Spirit of Valor
by Shepard's Lore
Summary: Jack, plagued with nightmares and traumatic experiences from the last ten years of his life, goes to the one place he knows that will give him peace. But will the small town from his childhood still give him the freedom he seeks, or will it bring nightmares of its own? FOMT.
1. Out With the Old

OoO( 1 )OoO

There he was again. At that same place he had dreamed about when he was a child. Lately, his dreams had been nightmarish hellscapes of the last ten years of his life, over and over, without relenting. Before, his job was his distraction. It was always easy to replace old nightmares with new ones in his line of work. But that option didn't exist anymore, and his skeletons were free to jump out of the closet and dance around his head as much as they liked.

But not this time. This time, it was different. Instead of an ocean of blood, or the haunted familiar faces that screamed at him from the shadows, his surroundings were peaceful. He was a child again, and was walking down a quaint cobbled road, looking down to the multi-colored stones that sparkled in the sunlight. He was back in the town with clean air and green flora that seemed to gush all the way up to the pathway. As he continued strolling down the road, he whistled to himself a familiar tune before coming along a large archway that led to an open sprawling field that had many kinds of livestock roaming to and fro in the grass, as well as wooden buildings that stood out in neat order.

"Wooooah..." he said excitedly as he saw the animals. The boy quickly ran up to one of the cows, but slowed his approach as he got closer, not wanting to spook the creature. When he was finally close enough, he reached out and stroked the bovine's nose, causing him to giggle slightly as it mooed in return.

"I think she likes you." came a scratchy, old voice from behind him. The young boy immediately spun around, terrified, and looked at the man who had snuck up on him. He was rather short for someone of his age, but despite the wispy white hair and wrinkled face, he was stocky and built as sturdy as the brick house behind him. He wore a pair of stained overalls over a dark brown shirt and had a large farming tool in one hand.

Despite the menacing blade at the end of the large scythe, the man had a soft, gentle smile on his face. The boy couldn't really tell what the purpose of the sharp bladed weapon was, but it looked wide enough to cut him in half, something that made him shrink even more underneath the cow for protection.

As if noticing the cause of the boy's agitation, the old man stuck the blade of the tool into the ground and chuckled. "Oh don't worry about that dusty old thing. That's for mowing the grass." he said in a kindly tone. The boy peeked out from under the cow's munching jaws at the man. "My name is Alexander. This here is my farm." he said to the boy. When he didn't receive any response, he continued. "What's your name?"

The young boy, with small bits of grass falling into his dark brown hair from the cow's mouth above simply said, "Jack."

The man smiled widely again at having communication now. "Alright Jack. Would you like to see the chickens as well?" Jack's face lit up immediately at the thought of more animals. "Come out from under there and I'll show them to you." he said, waving for the boy to follow him.

The rest of Jack's day consisted of an animal parade of different farm creatures. He chased the chickens around outside their coop, much to the amusement of the old man. And he got to actually ride on the horse. It was during this exhilarating ride that his parents ran up to the same gateway he had and screeched to a halt as they saw him. He smiled and waved at them, oblivious to the glares he was receiving from the two.

 _Flit!_ His dream sped forward. Now he was sitting at the old man's dinner table with his parents, eating a large plate of roast beef drowned in mashed potatoes and gravy. His parents eyed the boy curiously, as instead of begging for sweets, he was devouring the old man's food like a black hole. "I've never seen him eat wholesome food so eagerly." said his father.

"Your farm really is something." said his mother, who sat on the opposite side of the table as Jack and the old man. She chuckled momentarily and pushed her sliding glasses back up onto her nose. "We could probably leave him here and he'd be perfectly content."

Her husband looked at her mischievously. "Dear..." he said, elbowing her playfully.

"I wouldn't mind." came the soft spoken voice of the old man. Both parent's heads shot towards him, with their eyes wide. "I don't really get much company out here by myself. So having him around would actually be a treat." he said with a genuine smile.

The man and woman looked at each other momentarily before they both looked over at the boy. "We were just joking. We don't want to impose on you..." said the woman with a curious look on her face.

The older man waved her concerns off. "Oh nonsense. I've lived on this farm my entire life without a child of my own. It would be a pleasure to watch him for you."

"What about you Jack?" asked the father as he peered at the boy through his thin rimmed glasses. "Would you like to stay with Mr. Alexander?" he asked, raising his eyebrow curiously.

The boy looked up at his father and mother and nodded eagerly. "Yeah! His animals are awesome!" he shouted, then proceeded to shove the remainder of the mashed potatoes in his mouth.

The father chuckled and patted the wife on the shoulder. "Well dear, I guess we don't need to look for a babysitter."

 _Flit!_ Forward again. This time, several times. He was in the field playing with the sheep, pressing his face into their woolly hides. _Flit!_ He was riding the horse alone this time, but with the old man watching. He had learned to ride! _Flit!_ He was swimming in the pond, diving to the bottom to grab smooth stones in the crystal clear water. _Flit!_ He was laying back in a small field on the side of the largest hill on the island, watching as clouds as lazy as he was drifted by in the sky above. Suddenly, the snapping of a twig alerted him, and made him sit up.

As he sat up, his eyes locked onto a pretty girl wearing a summer dress with pink flowers all over it. Her hair was tied into twin pigtails, and her face showed brow-furrowing annoyance as she yanked the dress up to walk properly. But, her expression vanished as she finally saw him. Moving her feet hurriedly, she stopped in front of him and looked down at him with curiosity in her wide eyes. "What's your name?" she asked as she plopped down in the grass next to him, dress and all..

He cocked an eyebrow back at her. "I don't know, what's your name?" he asked suspiciously.

She glared at him and put her hands on her hips. "I don't know, what's your name!?" she shouted, sticking her tongue out at him afterwards.

Jack returned the gesture, his own tongue sticking out before he spoke. "I dunno! Watt's yur nabe!" shouted the young boy, his tongue warping his words. The girl stared at him briefly, then covered her mouth. His tongue returned, and his eyes narrowed as he looked at her curiously. Then he noticed her giggling at him. Before long, they were both laughing together.

When she recovered from her laughing fit, the girl smiled at him. "Wanna play?" she asked. Jack nodded eagerly, and they ran off together towards the large hill. It was hours later when they sat, tired and worn out with bruises, scrapes, and dirty clothes covering them. They sat in front of what the villagers called the Goddess Pond, and Jack was serene again as the girl sat next to him and they joked with one another. Soon, she fell asleep with her head in his lap, just as something suddenly caught his eye.

Turning his head, he saw a strange beam of darkness shining in the center of the pond. Like a plague, it swept over the surface of the cool, clean water until the beautiful spring was nothing but darkness, from edge to edge. Feeling a tingling in his spine, he slowly pulled away from the sleeping girl and crawled towards the edge. He couldn't have said why; he should have been running instead. But finally, he knelt down at the cobbled barrier and stared down into the abyss. And what he saw made him gasp in shock.

Instead of the calm, serene pool that he was used to, the inside of it was now a storming maelstrom, spiralling like a twister of death. He fell backwards in fright as a hand shot out from the darkness and grabbed the stone edge of the pond. Thinking someone might need rescuing, he shuffled forward again and saw her, trying to pull herself free. She was tall and curved, her body very much adult in ways his mother said he wasn't supposed to know yet. Her hair was green and wild, like vines of ivy, with flowers blossoming from it. And last of all, her clothes weren't even clothes. Instead of conventional clothing, she wore blooms and folds of plants and flowers that curved naturally to her body and made her look like she was some kind of festival dancer.

The boy shook his head, however, as his eyes met her beautiful emerald ones. For he saw in them a terror so powerful that he nearly fled. Instead, he reached down and grabbed her arm with his own small hands. "Please…!" she shouted from the depths. But no matter how hard he pulled, the swirl of the dark cyclone was too strong. Her fingers began slipping from the edge, her body now submerged up to her neck. He strained with everything he had, but it was no use. "Please...you must help me! Come back!" she shouted, then reached up and touched his forehead with her free hand. The single touch felt warm, comforting even. "Please Jack...help me!" she begged. Then her hand lost its grip. She was pulled away from him so violently that he was nearly sent rolling backwards as her majestic arm was yanked away from him. It was only seconds before the beautiful woman was sucked beneath the darkness fully, leaving Jack to stand at the edge of the pond and yell as he reached out for her again.

OoOoO

Jack sat up, rigidly, his body covered in cold sweat, and his heart pounding wildly. He shook his head, trying to calm his breathing and clear the dream from his brain, but the image of the woman being sucked into the abyss kept replaying itself in his mind. "What the hell is wrong with me?" he asked, before snorting in angered amusement. "What isn't wrong with me?" he asked as he stood up. His feet made contact with the carpet in his dingy room, and he stood fully and stretched as he walked over to the bathroom. Without even turning the light on, he twisted the handle for the cold water on the sink, causing it to spray out of the faucet.

Leaning forward, the man cupped his hands under the water, then splashed the chilled liquid against his face. He did this several more times before finally grabbing a towel and wiping it off of himself. As he stood up, he looked into the mirror above the sink and cringed lightly. The low light from the bedroom cast on his left side, showing in the mirror a tired, beaten, worn down, almost husk of a human. Brown, tattered hair lay on his head, and his chin showing a five o'clock shadow that nearly made him look homeless. This was someone who felt the weight of the world.

Then, his tired eyes turned to the right side of the figure, the side without the light. The darkness left a lot to the imagination, but it almost seemed to contort his face, making him look maniacal. With the shadows dancing from the crappy lamp in the bedroom, his other half looked like a madman ready to unleash a torrent of suffering on the world.

He wanted to look away, but refused. This was what he was now, and there was no point in trying to avoid it. The only thing that could be done was to fix himself. And that's exactly what he intended to do. Reaching down, he grabbed a packaged razor and ripped it from the plastic. Not bothering with shaving cream, he went to work on cleaning himself up. But even as he scraped away the last remaining scruff with the blade, he didn't notice any improvement in either of the figures.

It was then that a distraction enabled him to break his gaze away from the haunting reflection. His burner cell phone was ringing. He immediately wiped his face clean and dropped the towel in the sink, then walked over to the mobile and answered it. "Yeah?" he asked as he sat on the bed and lit a cigarette from a cheap pack he had gotten from a corner store.

 _"I know you told me only to use this for emergencies, but this is something I think you might want to hear."_ said the disembodied voice over the receiver.

Jack cocked an eyebrow as he puffed on the Natsume brand smoke, exhaling deeply. "What is it?" he asked, curious as to what could make his one contact in the world use this number.

 _"Old man Alexander passed away last week."_ said the voice, it's filter making the caller sound neither male nor female. As the words hit Jack, the cigarette fell from his lips onto the carpeted floor below.

Jack sat there for almost a full minute before finally responding. "How?" he asked, almost sharply.

 _"Natural causes. He was old when you were young, it shouldn't be a surprise that he only had a few good years left in him."_ said the voice. _"I'm sorry if that was harsh...it's just...I knew how much he meant to you. I thought you'd have wanted to know."_

"I did..." said Jack as he picked the cigarette back up and puffed it back to life. "What's going to happen to the farm?" he asked as he began to pull on a pair of socks.

 _"That's the thing. He had no kids, nor grandchildren. Hell, he didn't even have siblings. So he had nobody to leave it to. But the old man's will was sent to your address where I picked it up before anyone else could get to it. It turns out that he left the entire farm to you."_ said the disembodied figure in an amused tone.

Jack stopped, mid stride as he was fastening on one of his boots. The revelation was now running through his head at light speed. "Me?" he asked, almost unbelieving.

 _"I know. Imagine you, working on a..."_ it started, but was cut off immediately.

"I'll take it..." said Jack instantly.

 _"Wait...are you serious?"_ asked the disembodied voice. _"Jack, you don't know the first thing about running a farm!"_

"I've told you not to use my goddamned name on the phone." he snapped harshly.

 _"Alright, sorry. It's just, farming isn't exactly something I'd expect to see on your resume."_ said the voice, coming off sounding confused.

"That's because my resume consists of thousands of..." he said, but halted, a pained look now on his face as he put the cigarette out in the nearby ashtray. "Nevermind. The doctor said that in order to fix myself, I need peace. I need to relax, and I need to be as far away from my old life as possible. Besides, soil washes off the hands much easier than blood, right?"

 _"Huh...didn't think of it like that. Alright then. I'll go ahead and set everything up for you. I'll give you a call back when everything is ready."_ said the voice as they disconnected the line. Jack finished dressing himself, his last article being his remaining boot. When he was finally ready, he packed all of his things into a plastic bag, which he slid into a duffle bag, before pulling out a bottle of bleach and a rag. When he finally left an hour later, he walked out of the cheap hotel room and tossed the phone into a sewer opening in the street, where it was flooded with water from the heavy rains of the day.

Pulling up the collar on his duster, he walked off into the dark, rainy night.

OoOoO

A few days later, Jack found himself outside again. It was raining once more, and the hoodie he was currently wearing to cover up his dark hair was getting soaked thoroughly. He stood on the docks of a very out of the way boathouse, one which looked to have been out of business for a very long time. The building was in poor condition, with one extremely dirty window that looked like it had been sealed shut by years of grime buildup. The door was held closed only by a rusty padlock, and the entire structure's paint job was chipped away from age.

Regardless of how old it looked however, the outside showed multiple signs of life. There were crates stacked up taller than he was, filled with supplies that were no doubt going to the same place as him. He stood next to the old boat house as he looked out into the waters of the sea, where a heavy blanket of mist seemed to swallow anything and everything that strayed too far out into the water.

It was another twenty minutes of standing in the heavy rain before the object he had been waiting for finally came into view out of the foggy mire. It was a small barge, powered by motor, and had what looked like a small rickety shack in one corner of it, no doubt the pilot's seat. At the edge of the large water craft was a large man, taller than even him. He wore a thick jacket meant to keep out the rain, but had nothing on his head, showing a very military-esque buzz cut. Jack could also see from the fit of the man's jacket that he was extremely muscular beneath the covering.

After a few more minutes, the boat docked at the pier and the man jumped off, tying the craft onto the jetty before walking over to the crates. He began to lift them and load them onto the craft, seemingly ignoring the rain. Jack walked over as the man returned for another box. "Need any help?" he asked curiously.

The man looked at him, eyeing him up and down briefly. Up close, he could see that the man had a matching mustache to his hair, tightly trimmed, so that it only covered a small amount of space on his upper lip. "You looking for a free ride? Or food?" he asked as he eyed the stranger.

"Neither actually. I just want off this dock and across those waters as soon as possible. Already have a ticket purchased." said Jack as he flashed the man his ticket.

The boatsman donned a look of understanding as he scanned the ticket. "You'll be Jack then?" After getting a nod from the stranger, he just smiled. "Ah, my name is Zack. I help with the ferry's cargo." he said pointing a thumb in the direction of the barge. "I'll take you up on that offer. The sooner I get this done, the sooner we can get back." he said as he grabbed another crate with ease. "Be careful though, they're a bit..." he said, then watched, stunned as Jack grabbed one and lifted it onto his shoulder with ease. "Heavy..." he finished. The stranger just walked over to the barge and set the crate next to the others.

As Jack returned for another crate, he noticed a small amount of movement through the rain coming from the bushes. He tensed slightly, wondering if he had been followed. But his stance eased once more as he saw it was a small pup of some kind. It didn't look like a domesticated breed, more like a pure wolf pup. But it ran up to the crates and began sniffing around greedily. After watching it for a moment, he noticed that the poor creature's fur had sunken into its ribs, showing each crevice between the rib bones clearly. Reaching down, Jack picked the small creature up, causing it to yip in terror.

But, the stranger silenced the small puppy by pulling a piece of beef jerky out of his pocket and sliding it into the creature's mouth. The pup began to greedily yank and tear at the meat as Jack watched in amusement. He set the creature back on the ground underneath one of the awnings of the rickety old boathouse where it was still somewhat dry, then dropped a few more pieces onto the ground.

Afterwards, he returned to the crates and helped stack them all up onto the water craft. "Ready to go?" Zack asked as the new guy watched the small creature from the edge of the boat.

"As ready as I'll ever be." said Jack, walking away from the edge to go to the underside where the rain couldn't reach him. But his footsteps stopped as he heard the patter of paws behind him. The small puppy had dashed over to him, beef jerky still in its mouth, and bounded over the gap between the craft and the dock. It skidded to a halt in front of the man, just staring up at him with its large crystal blue eyes, causing him to smile.

"Friend o' yours?" asked Zack as he approached again, carrying the docking rope with him. Jack reached down and picked up the small creature, who began to tear once again into the meat.

"Guess he is now." he said as he walked to the edge of the barge. It had started moving once more away from the dock, and into the mist. "Mineral Town, here I come..." he said, closing his eyes and feeling the water in the air wrap around them as they too vanished from the known world.


	2. Intruders Welcome

OoO( 2 )OoO

On the barge, Jack had decided to take a seat among the crates, using one as a chair as he pulled off his soaking wet hoodie. As he reached up and draped the drenched jacket over the corner of one of the crates, the watercraft's assistant commander, Zack, approached him with a friendly smile. Zack was fairly well built. Whether that was due to his job of lifting and carrying crates, or some other reason was unknown to Jack. But, with his coat off now, he was getting an odd look from the man. He had some minor scarring down his arms, but the man was likely more staring at his own muscle. The structure on Jack's arms was unlike Zack's in many ways. Whereas the taller man was built like a weightlifter, Jack himself was built like a fighter. He expected questions, but instead received a simple observation.

"You look like you've done a few rounds in the Circle of Death…" remarked Zack as he cocked an eyebrow at the younger man.

Jack chuckled lightly as he flexed one of his arms. "Nothing so dramatic as that, but I know how to take care of myself." He knew what the man was referring to. In certain countries in the east, men and women fought in an open circle with their arms and legs roped off for extra brutality. While he knew plenty about the fighting style, he had never approached such a thing himself.

Nodding in acknowledgement, the barge assistant simply smiled again, leaving it at that. "You know we have bunks and actual seats over in the starboard side." he mentioned as he pointed towards a small door in the wall.

"That's alright. I'm more comfortable on hard surfaces anyway." Jack said as he stretched himself out, then shook off the water from himself. "Any other passengers onboard?"

"Only two. One's a regular, likes to come to Mineral Town ever so often to sell random odds 'n ends. The others as new as you though, said she heard good things about the island's beauty, and wanted to visit an old friend from Rhodes...whatever that means." he said nodding his head towards the passenger area. "So, if'n you don't mind my asking, why are you coming to town? Mineral Town is a good spot for retiring, and has plenty of fresh air. But it ain't got a lot of stuff for sightseein'." asked the ferryman.

Jack's ears perked at the comment immediately, but pushed it aside when a question followed. "I'm taking over Mr. Alexander's farm."

Zack's eyebrows shot up at the proclamation. "Oh yeah? Were you kin?"

Jack shook his head slowly as he collected his stuff together again. "He was a long time friend of the family. I've known him since I was a kid. Turns out he left it to me in his will when he passed away." he said, his voice still wavering as he said it.

"I see. Well, it'll be good to have someone takin' it over. Mineral Town is a pretty fragile ecosystem, and one loss like that can devastate her. Plus, if ol' Alexander feels you deserved to have his place, then I can't say I disagree with him. It's good to meet you Jack." he said, holding his hand out.

Jack looked at the hand warily, before reaching out and shaking it. "Mind if I ask a favor?" asked the new farmer-to-be.

"I suppose that depends on what it is." said the ferryman cautiously.

Jack chuckled and stood to his feet, showing that he was a few inches shorter than the seafarer. "Nothing too difficult I assure you." he said as he looked the man in the eyes. "All I ask is that if anyone ever asks you about me, you say you don't know me. And that nobody is living on the farm in Mineral Town."

Zack's eyebrows furrowed suspiciously. "Trying to hide?"

"You could say that. But not for anything criminal if that's what you're thinking. I'm just...tired of my old life. My doctor said that if I continued down the road I was walking, I'd end up in the grave at thirty." Zack nodded in acknowledgement. "But, some of my old partners don't seem to understand that. They think they can convince me to come back. And I want no part of it. I want no part of them."

Zack just smiled, his mustache curving upwards as he did. "No worries Jack. Nobody'll get anything out of me." he said, patting the young man on the shoulder. "Now, you do as your doctor said and go on and relax in the passenger area. Much more comfortable. I gotta get back up to old Greg before he beaches us." he said, then turned and left for the stairs that led back up to topside.

Jack grabbed his overlarge duffle bag and walked through the small door and into the seating area where he saw a young woman, dressed just about as shady as he was, and a man whose getup nearly knocked the eyes out of the back of his head. He wore what looked like a nauseatingly yellow mandarin suit with a multicolored braid hat to match. He also wore a pair of dark sunglasses, despite the below decks being low-light in the first place.

He shook his head to rid the permanent damage the color of the man's suit might have done and walked over to him. At the moment, he seemed to be trying to sell something to the woman. But both of the figures looked up as he approached. "I think Zack said he needed your for something topside." he said, nodding towards the stairs.

The Asian man's eyebrows raised slightly, then he nodded and grabbed his large bag, he headed towards the stairs quickly and exited into the cargo room. Jack sat down next to the woman, who after the yellow-suited man left, let out a large sigh of relief. "Thank you Christ." She wore a baseball cap without any insignia on a head of brown hair pulled into a ponytail, and also wore a pair of nameless shades. The rest of her was covered by a brandless red jacket, and a pair of blue jeans.

"The name's Jack actually." he commented with a small smile. She looked at him momentarily, then started laughing.

"My god...was that a joke?" she asked, looking at him stunned. "We haven't even hit ground yet and you're already changing." she said with a sincere smile.

"Well, a big part of it was letting go of the old and accepting the new. I think just the thought of being here is improving me." he said as he leaned forward, staring at the door. "So Zoey, coming to see me off?"

She smirked at him. "Don't get any ideas loverboy. This isn't any romantic Casa Blanca crap if that's what you were thinking." she said, reaching into her pocket and pulling something out before dangling them before his eyes. "The keys were with the will." she said, dropping the small keyring into his now open hand. "And...I did want to say goodbye. At least for now. I might even visit you in the future to check up on you."

He just nodded and sat back sullenly, putting the key in his pocket. "Thanks. I couldn't have done this without you."

"Damn right you couldn't." she said with a cocky grin. But her grin faded and she nudged him gently. "Jack, I know you, and I know what you've been through. I just want you to remember that these people don't know about all that. So when it comes to your anger..." she said, but he cut her off.

"I know. That's why I'm here though, to get better. I think the lack of civilization will help me with that." he said. She just nodded, then patted him on the knee.

"I hope so. If anyone deserves it, it's you." she said solemnly as she laid her head on his shoulder.

OoOoO

When the ferry finally docked at Mineral Town, Jack was there waiting with his duffel bag over one shoulder and his scrappy new companion in his hand. He hang dried his hoodie, and while it was still slightly wet, it was wearable enough to get him home. But this time, he didn't wear the hood. Giving the ferryman one last friendly nod, he left the boat and walked along the beach. The sand was a far cry from most of the beaches he was used to. Instead of the polluted or craggy sands, the granules he now walked through with his boots were golden and almost sparkling, showing an unbroken, immaculate surface which was only marred by his footprints. The water too was more clear and blue than he had ever seen before. It almost looked...magical.

Along the cliff wall of the beach were two houses that lined up perfectly with the dock.. One was a small, though well kept house that sat directly off the pier and into the side of the cliff. The other was a seaside shack with a large, boarded up window with a sign painted on that said **Closed**. Having seen most of the small shoreline's offerings, he quickly stepped up onto the path that led into town.

As he exited the secluded beach, he took his first steps into the town in over ten years. With it came wide-eyed awe as he looked around at the Rose Plaza. With the rest of the will, he had received a small map of the town. Not that the map had to be large, with the incredibly low number of residents living here. Still, he didn't want to end up wandering into the woods never to be seen again, though if the scenery around him were any indication, then it'd at least be a gorgeous way to go. The trees here were unlike anything he'd ever seen before. Instead of the sad, muted colors that typically showed on trees, this place was a metropolis of vibrant, green leaves that moved with each small shift in the wind. The entire gardened area around the plaza was brimming with life, as if the very air in this place had life giving properties.

After a moment, Jack realized that he had been standing in the same spot just staring around the square. Shaking himself from his stupor, he began moving forward again, smiling as he looked down at the cobbled path that he walked on. Suddenly, the déjà vu slammed into him like a sledge hammer, making him remember these same stones beneath his feet back when he was a child. But, already having been distracted enough, he shook the memories from his head and continued forward. As he moved towards the far corner of the plaza, he noticed a trio of ladies standing near the path he was aimed for, and all three of them had their eyes locked on him.

As he approached, he nodded his head politely. "Ladies." he said as he continued past them and onto the road that read **Farm Ave.** on the map. None of them stopped him to talk, so he kept walking. However, he could easily feel their gazes drilling into him like lasers. Finally, his attention turned away from the women's prying eyes, and onto the ranch that was, according to the map, his next door neighbors' chicken farm. Noting this in his head, he continued until he found the archway he was looking for. As he looked up at the aged, wooden sign, he smiled slightly. It had been a while, apparently, and as told in the will, he had changed the name of the farm solely for him. Now, instead of having **ALEXANDER'S** across the arching wooden structure, it read **REDWALL**.

But, as he stepped through the sign, all of his nostalgia vanished, and horror flooded in. While he didn't expect the place to be in peak condition, he definitely wasn't expecting what confronted him. The house and the buildings were about the only thing on the entire farm that had been taken care of. Gone were the straight fences, fertile field, and clean pastures that the cows grazed in. What stood before him was a field littered with boulders, tree stumps, branches of every size, stones, and weeds. His heart sank a bit as he took in the depressing state of the farm. "What happened?"

"Ummm..." came a voice behind him, making him spin around rapidly. The quiet voice belonged to a girl who had somehow managed to sneak up on him in his despairing state. She had on a pair of coveralls that overlayed an orange shirt. Her hair, which was about as orange as her top, was tied up into a tight braid that hung behind her. She had a pair of the clearest blue eyes he had ever seen before, and freckles that dotted her light skin. He just stood frozen, still coming to terms with being snuck up on before she spoke again. "Who...are you?" she asked, a curious look on her face.

He stood for a few moments longer before finally answering. "Jack. My name is Jack." he said to the fiery haired girl. "And you?"

"My name is Ann, I work at the inn with my father. Are you staying in town for a while?" she asked, eying his duffle bag. He probably looked like a tourist, but she couldn't make anything of the mongrel looking dog in his other hand.

"Umm...I'm actually moving into the farm here." he said, tilting his head towards the house to his left.

Her eyes widened at the claim. "You're taking over for old man Alexander?" she asked, surprise pouring from her tone. He just nodded, causing her to smile widely. "That's great!" she exclaimed, running up to him and holding her hand out to him. "Like I said, I work at the Ironheart Inn with my father. If you ever need anything to eat, or just need company, that's the place you want to go."

Jack smiled, stuffing his map into his bag and shaking her hand. "Good to meet you Ann. I'll be sure to stop by later. I intend to meet most of the locals before I get started on...this." he said looking at the field, his expression darkening again. However, he turned away again, not wanting to focus on the negative anymore. "I guess the inn is as good a place to start as any."

"Alright! I'll go ahead and tell my dad you're coming by. It'll be great having someone new in town." she said, then turned and sprinted in the opposite direction, leaving him just chuckling. After she disappeared around the corner of the cobbled road, he turned back to the farm. Immediately, his feet began carrying him towards the house, not wanting to look at the field any more than he had to. Pulling the key out of his coat, he unlocked the sturdy wooden door and swung the door open, then flipped the light switch on once he found it.

The second shock of his new life happened when he saw a relatively new, large, flat screen television sitting on a small wooden entertainment center. Most of the wooden furniture in the house looked like it had been home made now that he looked at them through adult eyes. Next to the television was a large bookshelf filled with a large number of volumes of all kinds of books. He let the puppy down onto the floor and looked over the many titles on the shelf. Suddenly, his nostalgia flared again as he recalled all the letters he set Alexander when he was younger.

Many times they had discussed Jack's favorite stories, or favorite kinds at the very least. Alexander had promised Jack one time that he'd buy a bunch of books in that style for the next time he came over, and they could read them together. A lot of the books he had mentioned were sitting on the shelf in front of him. He closed his eyes and reached up, rubbing the sting out of them. Very rarely had he ever had someone care about him as much as the old man. The proof was here in these books, in the letters, in the food he had cooked him.

Even his parents were at a loving distance when raising him. They were both scientists, who had passed away when he was around fifteen. But even when they were alive, while they loved their son, it seemed that they were always so busy. Even during their visit to the sunshine islands of Mineral Town, they were working. To know that he'd had someone who so deeply cared for him right under his nose just made him want to break. But he didn't. He just rubbed the tears away and turned to the rest of the house. Along the wall from the bookshelf was a counter that led to a stove, and cabinets to store all manner of groceries.

There were two more rooms attached to the end of the house. One was the bedroom, which had a small, but comfortable looking bed in it, as well as a closet to hang clothes in. To the side of the room was an attached bathroom that was nearly spotless, with both a large tub, and what looked like a recently built stand-up shower. Lastly, there was a small alcove in the wall was made for the laundry area. Despite how small the house was, Jack felt more home here than anywhere else he had ever been.

Dropping the dufflebag on the floor, he spied the couch that sat in front of the television. It looked pretty worn, but comfortable enough. Walking over, he removed his wet hoodie again, then threw it off to the side. Tossing his shirt as well, he plopped down on the couch with a sigh.

Suddenly, the sound of his door slamming open startled him. A young man armed with a wooden stave that looked like it had been a broom handle for some time charged in. Jack was immediately on his feet, his eyes narrowing as he took in the sight of the young man. He had straw colored hair that was tied off around his shoulders, and wore large rounded spectacles on his obviously terrified face. His clothing was nothing spectacular, and looked like he had just thrown it on minutes before. But the important part was that he had a weapon, and had just broken into the farmer's new house. The young man, not leaving much room for discussion, swung the wooden stick directly at Jack's head.

Unfortunately for the invader, Jack immediately snapped his hand up and caught the stave before it smacked his head. As his hand throbbed with a new stinging sensation, his eyes narrowed dangerously at the young man, who was now shocked that his assault had failed. A loud cracking sounded as Jack squeezed the wooden pole, splitting it down the middle. "You better have a good goddamn reason for coming into my house and attacking me." said the farmer-to-be as the sandy haired young man began backing away.

"I-I-I..." was all he could sputter as he tried fruitlessly to wrench the weapon away from the intruder. Suddenly, a flash of pink appeared in Jack's face. He looked down, startled at the color, and even more startled to find that the pink belonged to a girl's hair. She stood a full head shorter than him, and wore a fairly conservative dress that seemingly billowed out from her waist. It was red, with a matching crimson corset attached that covered a long sleeved white blouse.

So startled was he by her hair color however that he almost didn't realize that she was in his face. "You're intruding on Mr. Alexanders farm! That's why! How dare you come over here and strut around the place like you own it! Especially after breaking the..." she said, looking at the lock on the door. When she saw that both the lock, and the door frame were intact, she turned to the sandy-haired boy. "Ermm...picked the lock?" she asked. The blonde young man shrugged. She turned back to the intruder, who was now holding a key on a ring up in her face. "O-Oh..." she said, covering her face in embarrassment.

"Opened the lock to the door of my house, which Mr. Alexander bequeathed to me through his will." he said, his tone deadly as he glared at them both.

"Oh...I see." said the girl, seemingly oblivious to his glare. She dusted herself off and smiled brightly at him. "Sorry about that. It's good to meet you!" she said, her face still tinted pink from the embarrassing situation.

Jack began to growl, his blood now pumping with adrenaline from the surprise attack. The young man obviously sensed some kind of danger, as he reached forward and moved between the two. "Now look, we made a mistake is all. We really didn't mean to..." he said, but his eyes shot down to the couch, where the supposed intruders hands were. His fingers were now tearing into the cloth of the couch. "Oh man...are you alright? What's wrong with you?" he asked, looking concerned and terrified at the same time.

But the pink haired girl shoved him out of the way and opened Jack's eyelid wide, looking deep into his pupil as she did. Then she shocked them both by pulling his head down and pressing her lips softly to his forehead. Whatever fury had been building in him immediately crumbled as she pulled away. "Nope, no fever." she said, her brother looking at her incredulously.

"Popuri, he's not sick! He just wants to kill us!" shouted the young man.

But the girl flapped her hand dismissively. "Oh nonsense." she said, then turned and smiled at him, her cherry red eyes looking into his own brown ones. With his anger doused by her innocent obliviousness, he felt himself laugh for the first time in a long time. At seeing Jack laugh, she turned back to her brother with a triumphant smile as the farmer buried his face in the back of the couch. "See? Scaredy cat."

The young man crossed his arms and walked over to the new resident, an annoyed, but curious look on his face. "So, what's your name?" he asked, trying to glide past the near assault case he had almost given himself.

When his laughing finally subsided, he looked back at them with a smile, much to the young man's relief. "Jack." he said simply, staring expectantly at the two of them.

"My name is Rick, and this is my sister, Popuri. We work over at the Chicken Farm next door." he said, thumbing towards the farm in the distance that Jack had passed to get here. "Sorry about all this. We noticed a light on in the house. Mr. Alexander was buried almost a month ago, so we figured it had to be an intruder."

Jack glared at him again. "You live on an island. How many people just stroll through here to break into people's houses?" he asked, irritated at the dimwitted nature of the attack.

Rick just reached up, scratching the back of his sandy hair and smiled nervously. "Well...umm...none. But...you never know!" he said pleadingly.

Jack just sighed and plopped down onto the couch. "Next time, please put a little more thought into your actions. Were I not...me, you could have seriously injured someone." Rick nodded sheepishly, and Popuri seemed to ignore the fact that any wrongdoing had taken place at all.

"So, Mr. Alexander gave you the farm huh?" she asked curiously, to which Jack nodded. "That's great! It'll be nice to see someone over here again!" she said, then the excitement melted from her face, leaving behind a sad look. "Ever since Mr. Alexander got sick, he had to sell off his livestock. He couldn't even come out of his home to feed them anymore. Then we had a bad storm that ended up tearing up his field..." she said, waving her hand towards the door. Suddenly, she sniffed as if she were about to cry.

"Don't worry, I'll be sure to do him proud." said Jack, smiling more for her sake than from actual confidence. But the trick seemed to work, as she brightened up immediately.

"Great! Just remember, if you ever need any chickens, come let us know. We're the field right next door to you." she said, then snapped to attention immediately. "Oh no! We left mother!" she said, horrified. And as quick as that, the pink blur was out the door and rushing down the road again.

Soon after, her brother followed. "Sorry again! See ya Jack!" yelled Rick as he ran out the door and after his sister. Jack just leaned forward and rubbed his face in irritation, before getting up and closing the door.

When he returned to the couch, he turned the TV on just to see what kind of things the old man used to watch. The first thing to pop up seemed like some kind of twenty-four hour weather channel. There was a woman with long brown hair doing the forecasting, showing that the area of Mineral Town and the coast line that he had come from, with its small mining town known as Corel were in for another day of pure sunshine.

Changing the channel, he found some sappy soap opera about an orphaned brother and sister trying to make it in the big city. He grimaced and immediately changed it again. This time, it was a channel devoted to the sale of cooking utensils and furniture. Switching again brought him to the news channel, which currently had a somewhat attractive female anchor going on about a war off in some foreign country. He almost immediately flipped away, and found himself back at the weather channel. Turning off the TV, he rubbed his head before standing up again.

The puppy was now soundly sleeping on the arm of the couch, to which he smiled. But he had things to do today. So he rummaged through his duffel bag for another shirt, grabbed the homemade map, then left the house, closing the door behind him. He walked away from the farm and down the cobbled road once again with the map as his guide.

OoOoO

Ann stood at the counter of the Ironheart Inn, a quaint inn big enough to hold everyone in the village if the need were to arise. She had been bored most of the day, as her usual hangout people were busy. Popuri had to tend to her mother, Karen was a bitch, and Ellie, who little more than tolerated her was busy with paperwork. She just sat with her jaw planted in her palm as she looked around the inn.

It was after hours for the shops now, as the sun had sunk past the treeline, leaving the small town in a state of twilight. That meant that a few of the other villagers came by for drinks after work. Duke, the gruff older man who ran the Aja Winery, who was also never far from an open container of alcohol, was sitting at one of the tables enjoying a frosty beer. Harris, the town's only police officer was standing off to the side like some kind of mannequin, supposedly there to keep the peace. And Saibara, the silver haired old man who ran the blacksmith was also polishing off his own drink.

Oh, then there was Cliff. She didn't really know much about him. Who he was, what he was here for, where he disappeared to on Sundays, none of it. He was just a lifeless husk of a human that paid for room and board in a dead end town without a reason for being there. Suddenly, her judgemental thought process was halted as she heard the door open. When she saw Jack standing in the door, her eyes widened and a grin split her face.

"Jack!" she shouted, jumping over the bar and strolling over to him, finally happy to have her boredom broken. "I was wondering when you were going to get around to seeing us." she said, rocking back and forth on her heels as she stuck her hands in the back pockets of her coveralls. Every eye in the inn was now on the newcomer, curious looks from everybody except Cliff. God she wanted to break his miserable face so bad.

Jack scratched his head, smiling lightly. "Oh, hey Ann. Sorry I was getting used to the new house, then got attacked..." he said, turning away and mumbling the last part quietly.

She pivoted herself so that she was looking him in the face, "You were attacked?"

He simply nodded. "Popuri and Rick thought I was an intruder." he said. Ann just smiled widely, then began to laugh loudly, doubling over as she did. He just glared at her as she recovered. "Sorry, but the image..." she said, wiping away tears of mirth.

He just shook his head, ready to change the subject. "Anyway, what are you up to?" he asked curiously as he looked around the small tavern. There were only four people here, none of which looked to be in her particular hangout. Except the one kid in the corner, who appeared to have hit his dog with a truck by accident, then his mother, and maybe wrecked the truck afterwards. Whatever his issue was, he was definitely not a happy addition to the quaint inn.

"Nothing right now. That's why I was hoping you'd stop by. As a welcoming gift to the village, I was going to make you my special beef stew." she said as she led him over to the counter. Jumping back across with the agility of a panther, she opened the door to a back room. "DAAAAAAAAAD!" she shouted into the back room.

"WHAT!?" came a gruff voice from the back.

"WE HAVE A NEW GUEST!" she hollered back.

"Wha!?" came the voice again, this time laced with astonishment. Soon after, a man with a very large, round build and the same fiery orange hair as Ann, though streaked slightly with gray, emerged from the back. When he saw Jack, his smiled widely, the bushy orange mustache curling on his face. "Welcome welcome! This here's the Ironheart Inn, and I'm her keeper, Doug. Now, are ya here for the night? Or just stopping by for somethin' to eat?" he asked in a jolly manner.

Jack nodded his head politely to the man. "Uhh...actually I came by to see Ann. See, I just..."

"Oh did ya now?" asked Doug as he turned to his daughter and elbowed her lightly, throwing her a sly wink.

"Not like that dad! Ugh!" she said, crossing her arms and looking away in embarrassment.

Doug just chuckled and turned back to Jack, who responded with. "Actually, I just moved into Mr. Alexander's farm and thought I'd stop by for introductions." he said, looking around at the others. Almost immediately, their faces all dawned a look of comprehension. Except Cliff, who seemed to be oblivious to anything and everything going on.

"Are you his grandson?" asked the oldest man with the unkempt white hair that wrapped around his bald head.

Jack looked at him oddly, wondering if everybody in this village over a certain age had a mustache, then shook his head and answered. "No, but he left it to me in his will. He was a good friend of my family, and I guess he didn't have any family to pass it off to." he said, looking at the floor.

Doug just reached up and put a hand on his shoulder. "He was a big part of all our lives. He will definitely be missed." he said, then locked gazes with Jack sternly. "You know you've got a hell of a pair of boots to fill."

Jack nodded as he looked up at the orange-haired innkeeper. "I know. He was a great farmer, and an even better man. I have a lot to live up to if I'm going to be taking over for him." he said, his fist clenching lightly.

But Doug squeezed his shoulder then let go. "Sounds like you're gonna do fine to me!" he said happily as he slapped the young man on the back. "So, what'll it be then?"

"Dad, I wanted to give him a freebee, you know, as a welcome to town kind of thing." she said, looking up at her father with her large sparkling blue eyes. The man looked at her, then flinched, unable to take his eyes away. "Pretty please?"

After a moment, he finally conceded. "Oh alright then! Just stop staring at me like that!" he shouted as he turned away and walked behind the bar. Ann snickered silently as she watched him go.

"That's quite alright...I have money." said the farmer. But Doug shook his head and waved the young man towards one of the seats.

"Nonsense! Have a seat, I'll be right back out with some of our special." said the burly man. Jack followed the order and sat at the table. Ann jumped into the seat across from him and smiled at him.

"Sooo..." he said, eying her suspiciously. "Telepathic? Or..."

She looked at him oddly. "What's that mean?" she asked with a confused look on her face.

"It means you can control people with your mind." he said in a hushed whisper, as if keeping a secret from the others.

She giggled loudly and shook her head, whipping her braid to and fro as she did. "Not my mind. Just these." she said, then gave Jack the same injured puppy look she had her father. He felt the urge slip into his mind then and there to do what she said. He shook his head, looking into those crystal pools of eternity again before looking away.

"Alright I got it!" he said, keeping his eyes closed and causing her to giggle once more. "How do you not lead the men in town like the Pied Piper with that look?"

She just looked away, and he noticed a small pink tint to her cheeks as she did. "I...don't really think about that kind of stuff. Too much to do at the inn." she said, reaching up and fidgeting with her braid as she did.

Jack just chuckled as his mind began examined her inside and out this time. From her appearance and general attitude towards her father, she was a tomboy. She had a rough exterior on the outside, but anytime he poked at an opening in the armor, she showed her soft squishy interior. Her posture and occasional glances at him showed she was somewhat interested in him, perhaps thought he was attractive. Given her typical outward shell, it was unlikely that she was just being polite and neighborly, as there would be no reason to expose her core. So that was it then, she was moderately attracted to him, and as such was much more vulnerable to his teasing.

When he realized that the profiler in his brain was running he slapped his hands over his eyes. "I've got to stop that..." he mumbled to himself.

"Stop what?" she asked, eying him oddly.

"Nothing." he said, looking around for any kind of distraction. To his great relief, Doug came out shortly after with a steaming bowl of stew and a large glass of an orange liquid brewing inside it.

"Gather around gentleman!" shouted Doug to the other patrons. Duke and Saibara approached the table with their own glasses, while Cliff and Harris stayed where they were. Both of them got a stern glare from the innkeeper as he set the bowl and the drink on the table before Jack, then moved on. "Duke, Saibara, this is Jack. Cheers to the Mineral Town farm being in his capable hands!" he said holding his own glass forward. Duke and Saibara clinked their glasses to his.

"To Jack!" they shouted, both thrilled to have another reason to drink. Ann pushed his own towards him. Jack looked down at the orange liquid in a mug, then took the handle and clinked it to the others with a smile.

"I think I'm going to like it here." he said with a new confidence brewing inside him that he hadn't had when he arrived.


	3. First Signs

OoO( 3 )OoO

The girl had been staring curiously at the monitor as she noticed his pulse started picking up. "Well, that's odd." she said as she examined the screen closer. The doctor walked in and looked at the screen from behind her as he sipped on a cup of coffee. She turned and noticed the cup, scrunching her nose as she did. "You know you shouldn't be drinking that stuff this late."

He didn't even crack a smile. "I'm aware." he said before turning to their current patient. Suddenly, his coffee mug fell and shattered to the ground, splattering coffee all over his pants. The nurse spun and saw the reason for the drop, and it was terrifying. When she had previously turned to stare at the monitor, he looked to be in a dead sleep. Now that she had turned to face him again, he was sat up fully with an almost dying look on his face, as if he were a zombie rising from the dead.

She held a clipboard up, nervously covering all of her face but her eyes. Despite the horrific method of awakening, she still approached him quietly. "Sir, do you know where you are?" she asked quietly. He slowly turned to look at her and she gasped lightly. Even his expression made him look terrifying at the moment. But even so, she stepped forward again. His look suddenly softened and he fell back on the bed, breathing heavily. "Sir?"

"No...where am I?" he asked, reaching up and rubbing his eyes tiredly.

"You're in the Mineral Town Hospital. We found you face first in the dirt outside. Can you tell us what happened?" asked the male doctor after he collected himself. Jack looked at him curiously, examining him. He had a mop of black hair that was contained by one of the archaic head mirrors that doctors of bygone days used to wear. He would almost look comical if it weren't for the long white lab coat and very serious expression.

The farmer raised his hand and rubbed his head, trying to recall his memories from the previous night. "I was...at the inn..."

"Well, that about explains it then." said the doctor as he turned and walked out of the room. The girl just giggled, then turned to him. She had soft brown hair that came down to her ears, and matching eyes that sparkled in the bright light of the recovery room. Unlike the serious doctor, she wore a blue and white dress that seemed to radiate care. He looked down at the nametag pinned to her dress that said **Elli**.

"I'm just going to check your vitals one more time." she said as she stuffed a thermometer in his mouth. He sighed heavily as he sat on the bed. "It was an orange drink wasn't it?" she asked curiously. Jack looked at her, then nodded as she smiled. "Ah yes, every time a newcomer enters town, they always break out the hard stuff." she said with an exasperated sigh. "So, Jack was it? You're moving to town then?" she asked, taking the thermometer from his mouth and looking at it, before writing the results onto a clipboard.

"Yeah, I'm taking over the farm." he said, squinting to keep the light out of his eyes. She turned and noticed his expression, then flipped off the light switch, letting the low light from a lamp fill the room.

"I see, so you will be staying here for a long while then?" she asked curiously, noting as he nodded. "Well, then it's good you came by. If we're going to be your providers for any length of time then we should really give you a check up." she said with a bright smile. Despite his current situation, he couldn't help but smile at her. "By the way, you were pretty fitful last night. And...you seemed fairly distressed. Were you having a nightmare?"

He looked at her, then looked at the ceiling. "I...don't remember." he said, straining his mind.

She turned back to him and placed a gentle hand on his own, squeezing lightly. "Whatever happened, I'm sorry. You were very upset, so it must have been very traumatizing." she said with deep concern. He looked back into her large brown eyes and only saw genuine caring from them. "Alright, sit up. And shirt off." she demanded as she turned and grabbed her tools for his checkup. Once she had all her stuff, she turned around and gasped in shock.

Jack now sat before her shirtless, showing not only ripples of agile muscle, but also a mosaic of scars across his entire body. From the neck down, the farmer had slashes of scars that zigzagged with pink collagen all across his torso.

"By the Goddess...what happened to you?" she asked as she walked forward and began examining his solid form.

"I had a hazardous occupation before coming here. If it's alright with you, I'd rather not discuss it." he said, looking down at the ground. She saw his expression, and smiled sweetly.

"As you wish. But I will need to document all of these. So, please hold still." she said as she crouched down and began examining each of the bits of scar tissue. While she hadn't had the worldly experiences of other doctors, she had been through an ocean of medical reports from across the world about different injuries. She bit her bottom lip as she came across a small group of scars that were no bigger than a pencil eraser. Those could only be one of two kinds of wounds. Stab wounds with a very pointed object, or bullet wounds. Either one made her cringe at the implications of his previous job. After documenting the rest, which had consisted of more dotted marks covered with scar tissue, a burn mark across his leg, and many many slashing scars that likely involved the serrated edge of a blade, she set the clipboard down and sighed.

He looked up at her curiously. "Is something the matter?"

She just gave him a bright smile. "I...seem to have run out of room on my paper. Luckily, I write very small and managed to fit them all in." she said, then sat down on the bed next to him. "If you don't mind my asking, why would you work in a job that did this to you?" she asked, her chocolate brown eyes now unintentionally looking at the muscle instead of the scars.

He just blinked, then shook his head. "Sometimes you don't have a choice." he said, then stood up and turned to her. "Am I good to go doc?"

In her closer examination of his muscular structure, she hadn't realized that she was blushing intensely. Looking up at him, she just smiled and nodded. "Of course. We've got everything we need here now, and aside from a possible headache, you seem to have shrugged off the effects of Ann's liver busting drink." she said, watching as he put his shirt back on.

Jack just smiled down at her and held out his hand. "It was good to meet you Elli." She just smiled sweetly and shook his hand.

"Be sure to introduce yourself to the others in town. I'm sure they'd like to meet you as well." she said, getting a nod from him. Grabbing the clipboard, she walked over to the next room as the farmer exited the clinic, and stepped up to where the doctor's desk. "Finally finished Tim." she said, dropping the clipboard in front of him. The doctor grabbed the form and glanced at it for a moment before setting it down.

Ellie chuckled as the doctor stopped as if frozen in time, then picked up the medical clipboard again, gazing at it with his eyes wide open. "Was he a crash test dummy?" he asked, looking at the explanation on the paperwork.

OoOoO

When he stepped out of the hospital, Jack looked up and saw that he had likely spent the entire night in the hospital. He sighed to himself promising to get back at Ann later for blitzing him out of his mind on his first day. But, since he was in town already, he might as well follow Elli's advice and check out the rest of the town's features.

He took a right and found himself at the door to the supposed supermarket of the town. He tilted his head and looked at the size of the building. "Super huh?" he asked, before opening the door and stepping inside. There was nothing super about it in fact. The inside was set up with shelves of products, from food on one side that wasn't affected by room temperature, to a new looking cooler in the corner that held drinks and perishable items. To the far end of the cooler was a table with a random assortment of equipment that he stopped and eyed curiously thinking that some of them might be useful.

"Oh...hi..." said a voice from his left. He looked up and stopped, stunned at the girl standing in front of him. She had light brunette hair down to her waist, with the bangs of her hair either dyed, or sun bleached a light blonde color. All he could see of her clothing behind the counter she was standing behind was that she wore a purple vest over a white shirt. But the most remarkable thing about her was her beauty. She had soft, curved features and green eyes that were framed perfectly by her blonde bangs. "Sorry...I didn't hear you come in." she said clearly nervous in her stance.

He just smiled to her. and walked over to the counter. "That's alright. I'm really just here to meet everyone in town." The girl, who looked like she was about to fidget returned his smile. "My name is Jack by the way."

"I see. Well, I'm Karen. I work here with my parents." she said as she turned to the door behind her. "Dad, come meet the new guy in town!" she said, her voice now betraying excitement.

The man she referred to as dad was in fact a very short man with a head of slick black hair and a matching mustache. Were it not for the doctor and Duke, his suspicions about the mustache mafia might have just grown. The man's short stature was also complimented by his many insecurities it seemed, most of which showed in his slouched, submissive stance. He shook Jack's hand weakly with a very quiet, "Good to meet you. I'm Jeff, Karen's father." Jack could only smile nervously at the man as he tried not to squeeze too hard.

"Hey dad, since this is his first time in the store, why don't we give him a free bag of seeds. He's going to be our supplier as well after all." she said with a genuine gorgeous smile. Jeff looked at her startled, then cringed and held his stomach as if in pain.

"B-But Karen...your mother..." he complained, but she wasn't having any of it.

His daughter's face immediately warped into a mask of anger. "Daaaaad." she said forcefully.

"Ummm..." Jack tried to cut in, but Karen pointed a finger in his face.

"Silence." she said, her face now a mix between a confident smirk and a glare. Then she turned back to her dad. "Dad, with as many times as you've let Duke just stroll out of here without paying, you can spare a bag of seeds for this handsome newcomer."

"What?" asked Jack, who had followed her order up to that point.

"I said he can spare a bag of seeds for you." she repeated, this time leaving out her previous slip of the tongue. Jack just laughed to himself.

"A-Alright...I suppose it couldn't hurt..." said Jeff as he nodded. "You can get it for him. I'm going to lay down again." he said tiredly as he shuffled back into the back room again.

Karen, now wearing a winning smile, turned back to him. "Welcome to Mineral Town." she said happily as she held up a small pouch of seeds labeled **Turnip**.

He just nodded and took the bag of seeds that she offered him. "Uh, thanks." he said nervously. He wasn't so sure about getting all this free stuff handed to him. "I should go."

She nodded and walked him to the door. "You know where to find me if you ever need me." she said happily, getting a nod before the farmer left. When she was sure he wasn't looking, she leaned against the wall and laid her head back. "Goddess, why do you do this to me?" she asked, reaching up and feeling her heartbeat thumping rapidly.

OoOoO

Mary had been in the upper floor of her library for most of the day. Not many people came by that often, so lately she had been spending most of her days pulling books from the shelves and looking through them for certain references as she slowly began to type out the first chapter of her own novel. She had gone through this process many times before. The outcome usually had the first draft being thrown into the fire with a sigh.

But today, she had it. She had latched onto an idea and yanked on it until she had something solid to write. Now, in her hands, she had the reference she was looking for. And she was now a locomotive that was on its way to success. As she found out quickly however, even the high powered locomotive can be derailed, which is exactly what happened when she thumped into something in front of her and fell on her hind end.

When she looked up, she eeped quietly and hid behind the large book she was holding. Jack had been looking around the library curiously, noticing that only one of the many shelves was actually full. The others had large patches in them that were completely bare of any kind of reading material. In his inattentiveness, he didn't notice the small librarian move down the stairs. Only when she bumped into him and was practically flattened by the heavy tome she had in her hands had he noticed that someone was actually in the library.

Kneeling down, he immediately took her book and held his hand out to her. "I'm sorry, I didn't notice you or I would have moved." he said with a smile. She reached forward timidly and took his hand, allowing him to help her back to her feet. When she was standing again, she dusted off her rather rustic looking school uniform-like skirt. When she had properly adjusted her glasses again, she looked up at Jack nervously.

"N-No, it was my fault. I wasn't paying attention." she said, then remembering that he was holding her book.

"If you don't mind my asking, what had your attention so...oh..." he said as he looked at the book's title as he handed it back to her. The title read ' **Mysteries of the Occult** '.

"It's for a project I'm working on." she said, hugging the book to her chest firmly before looking down again.

"What kind of project?" he asked curiously, his rapt attention on her. Then he stopped abruptly, realizing that he'd not even introduced himself yet. "Oh, um, my name is Jack." he said, a foolish grim on his face. Somehow, the girl's massive timidness seemed to leak into him.

She just gave him a small smile, something that could melt him entirely. The only description that her fit her smile was adorable. "Mary. I'm the librarian here in Mineral Town." she said as she look up at him through her thick lenses. "And to answer your question..." she said, staring at the ground and beginning to fidget with her fingers. "I'm...writing a novel."

His eyes widened. "Really? No kidding?" She nodded nervously, unsure what his reaction meant. "Wow, that's...amazing." The girl blushed madly and hid her face behind the tome in her hands.

"Nooo. It's really nothing." she said, trying to change the subject. "A-Anyway, this here is the Mineral Town library. Most of the books are my father's. He has an extensive collection of books he's written on the subjects of botany and plant biology. So if you ever need any advice on plants, you know where to look. Otherwise, we have a couple of books here and there, but not as many as I'd like." she said, now gazing around at the empty shelves.

He nodded as he looked around, then turned back to her. "I'll be sure to swing by if I need anything." he commented as his confident smile returned. "And I certainly hope you'll keep me updated on your novel. I'd like to read it whenever you finish." he mentioned, making her cheeks flush again.

"O-Okay..." she said, ducking back into her shell again. "You'll be on the farm right?" she asked, getting a nod. "Hope to see you again soon." she said waving as he turned to leave. When he finally closed the door and left, she sat behind her desk again, moved the book off to the side, folded her glasses and put them away, then allowed her face to fall flat into the desk. "How embarrassing..."

OoOoO

Jack had taken a bit more time to visit Ann again, only to find out that she had just about as much recollection of last night as he did. She sat behind the counter with a miserable look on her face as he entered the inn. When she caught sight of him, she tried smiling, but immediately grabbed her head and groaned in pain.

He just chuckled as he approached the counter. "Something wrong Ann?" he asked mischievously. She waved him away immediately.

"Not so loud...please..." she begged. But his smile never vanished as he lounged over the counter, his headache now gone with the fresh air he had received from his trip around town. Something about the town's air amazed him. It smelled...clean, fresh even. Never had he been in an environment where the air itself seemed to revitalize him.

Ann however, looked as if she had been dragged by a horse through the town before being allowed to wake up. "Are you sure? I was planning on singing for you. You know, I'm told that I have the voice of an opera singer." he said, trying to keep himself from laughing at the horrified expression on her face.

"I'll pay you a million dollars not to do that." she whined as she cradled her head in her hands.

Feeling somewhat bad for her, he finally decided to take it easy. "Alright. But I owe you one for me ending up ass to the sky outside."

She nodded slowly. "Alright, alright. I get it." she said with another groan as her stomach lurched. "What do you want?"

"Come to my farm when you get better. You can help me with the field." he said nonchalantly as he examined his fingernails. She looked at him in horror before giving up.

"Fine." she growled as she laid her head on the cool surface of the wooden counter.

"Good. It's a date, now if you'll excuse me, I have to get home. I might as well get started on that hell as soon as possible." he said with a sigh not noticing that Cliff had just looked up at him. She waved to him as he left, then slapped a hand over her mouth before sprinting to the bathroom.

OoOoO

He had spent hours on the field, hacking apart branches with his axe before throwing them into the wood shed on the side of his barn. Two of the many hours he had spent digging up a massive branch that had been covered by months of soil, before hacking it to pieces and tossing it with the rest.

The tree trunks were a whole nightmare of their own that he'd deal with later. But his biggest issue was that there was a giant boulder right smack in the middle of where his first crop was going to be planted. The closest corner of the field to his house had the goliath of a rock sitting there, mocking him. "You are the dragon to my St. George." he said as he pulled the hammer from his shed and approached the large stone.

As he was striding across the field to the boulder, he noticed two people at the entrance to the farm. One was the familiar red-haired poisoner from the previous night. She looked a bit better since their last encounter, but still a bit woozy on her feet. The other was the nurse Elli. She carried a basket on one arm as she looked around, then spotted him.

The nurse smiled and waved as she approached with Ann tailing her, less than enthusiastic about spending her recovery hours on his farm. But all thoughts of that slipped out of her mind when she realized that he was now topless, sweating, and covered in scars. The redhead's eyes widened and glued to every curve of muscle and scarred area of his form.

"Hey ladies, to what do I owe the pleasure?" he asked curiously as he held the hammer over his shoulder.

"Uhhhh..." was all that Ann could get out.

"I figured you'd still be a bit under the weather after your...encounter." said the nurse as she turned and looked at Ann amused. "So, I brought you some aspirin and..." she said, but the medicine was immediately ripped from her hands by the redheaded girl who popped the cap and downed a few without water. Ellie glared at the girl and wrenched the bottle back, before setting it in the basket. "As I was saying, aspirin and an elixir that I made myself. It hydrates you immensely and should flush some of that terrible stuff out of your system."

Jack chuckled as he watched Ann grasp for the bottle of blue-tinted water as well, only being held back by Elli grabbing the girl's forehead and holding her out of reach. "Cummon Elli! Gimme some!" shouted the girl.

"You knew what you were getting into when you drank that terrible stuff. Jack however was an innocent victim in all this, and ended up outside in the dirt because of that vile drink of yours." she said as she reached out and handed him the basket. Jack smiled back and grabbed the handle, leaning over to set it next to the shipping cooler that he was leaning against. Suddenly, Elli's eyes caught something she had missed before when examining him. She was so focused on the scars that she had completely gone over a small tattoo on the back of his neck. She couldn't see it very clearly without getting closer, so she leaned forward slightly as he knelt down. It was very intricate and colorful, but looked very intimidating.

Focused directly on the back of his neck was the head of a horrific looking wolf, its fur as black as the abyss and its teeth as sharp as daggers. It's eyes were blank and lifeless, and fire was erupting from its mouth and billowing upwards as if the soulless looking canine were a dragon breathing it from its lungs. But strangest of all was the red orb surrounding it. Having seen many fashionable tattoos in college, she'd never seen one that so blatantly outlined itself in a circle.

She was so stunned into silence by the tattoo that she didn't even reprimand Ann for swiping the elixir and guzzling it down. "So, what were you needing help with." asked Ann, who's eyes were more distracted by the muscle than Elli's.

Jack reached up and wiped the sweat from his brow before leaning on the hammer handle. "Well, actually, I'm almost done for the day. I was just going to finish off this pest..." he said as he reached back and knocked on the boulder. "Before I turn in for the night. So you can probably go home for now if you like." he said as he swung the hammer over one shoulder and hopped up onto the rock.

Ann just smiled at him playfully. "Ten bucks says you can't break it with that hammer." she said with her hands on her hips.

Elli, finally snapping out of her trance and looked at Ann, then back at Jack. "I...I'm not very good at this kind of thing, but that hammer does look rather worn." she commented as she noticed that the tool was the same one used by Alexander for years.

Ann guffawed at the remark. "See! Even Elli thinks you can't do it!" she said challengingly.

Elli looked at Ann in shock. "I said no such thing!" she snapped as she planted her hands on her hips.

"Well, we'll just see then." said Jack as he took Ann's bait.

Ann leaned over and nudged Elli gently. "I think he's trying to impress you." she said with a giggle. The nurse just covered her face as she began blushing as Jack lifted the hammer and slammed the sledge-like head against the weak spot he found on the top. It bounced heavily off the stony surface however. He continued to pound at it for a full minute before Ann finally stepped up. "See? Cummon muscles, let's go to the inn for a..."

"I've almost got it." said Jack forcefully as he slammed the hammer home again. Ann stepped back, stunned at being cut off so harshly. Something about his voice had changed. Up to this point, he usually had a flippant, casual tone that immediately drew her attention. But that response was cold, and almost forceful enough to knock her on her behind.

"Jack, I think she's right. You really..." said Elli, whose expression told that she had felt the change too. But she was cut off by the sound of a loud snap. The head of the hammer, as well as a portion of the upper handle flew off into the field. Both girls watched it fly off in surprise before they realized that the farmer had ditched the tool entirely and was now assaulting the boulder with his fists, smashing one after the other into the supposed weak spot with a maniacal grin on his face.

"DIE DIE DIE DIE!" he shouted as his hands began to bloody from the attack.

"Jack!" shouted Ann, her face now red as she was borderline in tears. The farmer stopped as he realized what was happening, then fell back on his rear end as he looked at his hands. They were now torn and covered in blood.

"By the Goddess! Your hands!" shouted Elli as she rushed forward onto the boulder and took both of his worn hands into her own, examining them with concern. Immediately, she unzipped the pouch on her side and pulled out a roll of gauze. Turning to Ann, she said sternly, "Get the elixir and pour it over the injuries carefully. We need to wash them out."

Ann had only twice seen Elli in 'full nurse mode', and reacted speedily to her requests. Pulling the blue liquid out of the basket, she hopped up and uncapped it before she slowly began to bathe his bloody hands.

Jack, who had snapped out of his rage stupor looked up at the two as his heart began to slow from the pulsing adrenaline. Finally, a smile cracked his face. Once the wound was clean, Ellie wrapped both of his hands until he could barely move his fingers. "That...feels better. Thank you." he said, smiling again.

Both of the girls looked up at him. Elli smiled, her cheeks tinged with pink at the compliment. "Th-Thank you." she said shyly, not used to her skills being complimented.

Ann however looked at the farmer more with a nervous anticipation. "Why did you do that?" she asked, betraying her bewilderment. "You couldn't have thought you'd break it with your fists..."

Jack, unprepared for the question, looked down at the boulder below them. "I..." he said, hesitating. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he looked up at them. "You two seem very trustworthy. So if I tell you, do you promise to keep it a secret?" he asked seriously. They both nodded nervously, causing him to look away in shame. "For reasons that shall go unsaid..." he looked at Elli, who went wide-eyed. "I have anger issues. Not the typical kind where someone gets mad and yells and screams and throws a fit. Mine...are more physical. When I am confronted with obstacles that refuse to move, my anger takes over and I end up wanting to destroy anything in my path."

"This has to do with your...erm...previous occupation?" asked Elli, sympathy pouring from her voice. He simply nodded. "And you are prone to these...episodes, when you are unable to do something physically?"

He just looked up at her, having an internal debate with himself. "I've never done it randomly, if that's what you mean. There was always a trigger for it." he said, his tone clear that he couldn't say any more. "In any case, that's why I came here. To try and get rid of this...thing."

Elli stared at him a long moment before finally nodding with a smile. "Well Jack, we're still glad to have you here." she said sweetly. He looked at her stunned for a moment, almost unbelieving that she wasn't now terrified to be around him. As he once more looked into those sincere brown eyes, he smiled back.

"Heh...thanks." he said, scratching the back of his head with his bandaged hand.

"But!" she said, getting his attention immediately. "If you ever injure yourself, then you come by the hospital immediately. I won't have you getting an infection because you were too stubborn or angry to come see me. Do I make myself clear?" she asked, her voice carrying heavy authority as she placed her hands firmly on her hips. For a split second, Jack eyed her waist, which clearly showed how wide her hips were they were when she pushed her dress against them.

Jack got to his feet and stood straight, then saluted with his wrapped hand. "Yes ma'am!" he shouted, making both of the girls giggle.

Then Ann's face lit up. "Hey Jack! You're a fighter right? Do you like kung fu?" she asked hopefully.

He looked at her oddly. "Depends..."

"I have like...a whole collection of movies we need to watch then! You have a TV right?" she asked, showing him that she too was sincere about continuing to have him around. He just nodded dumbly. "Great! This weekend we can make a marathon of it!" she said excitedly. "Consider it payment for losing our bet."

He just nodded with a sigh. "What have I gotten myself into?"


	4. Episodes

OoO( 4 )OoO

It had been a pretty rough night that night. Between the puppy howling at the full moon outside the window, the dull aching in his hands, and the dead silence when the puppy finally fell asleep, he couldn't find the power in himself to shut his brain down. He just sat and thought about the only thing that mattered anymore. Mineral Town.

Thus far, he had met most of the villagers. The few he hadn't met, he had no doubt he'd meet in the days to come. He rolled around in the bed a little while longer before finally falling asleep. But it was a short sleep, as he was startled awake by a loud knocking on his door. Rolling off the bed, he groggily noted that the sun was up now and got to his feet before making his way over to the door.

Finally, when he got a grasp on the handle, he swung it open fiercely, and was again attacked by the sheer volume that the man's suit screamed. The same man from the ferry was now standing at his door, in the same obnoxiously yellow suit, but this time he had a wide smile on his face.

"Herro sah!" he said in a thick accent as he saw Jack looking down at him. The only response he received was a very telling glare. "My name Won. I am very good salesman and would interest you in my many wares." he said enthusiastically before reaching down for his bag.

"Stop." said Jack forcefully. The Asian man looked up at him in shock. "I've been to forty different countries in Asia, and you're disrespecting them all with that ridiculous accent." he said in irritation.

Won stood to his full height, obviously embarrassed at his predicament. "I...look, it sells well over here okay? People love the mystical salesman with a foreign accent." he said, dropping the theatrics and leveling with Jack.

"Even so, I don't like being talked to like an idiot. So if you have something to sell, then pitch. Otherwise, let me slam the door in your face and get it over with." he said, making the salesman's shoulders sag. Seeing the man deflate, Jack reached up and rubbed his eyes. "Look, come in and I'll take a look at what you've got." he simply said, stepping aside.

Won entered his house, looking warily at the wolf-like pup that ran up and began sniffing him. Sitting down at the table, the yellow clad salesman began digging in his bag. He had taken a few more moments to dig around than Jack thought was necessary. "Sorry..."

"Having trouble finding something?" asked the farmer curiously as he sat down across from him.

The Asian man looked at him and shook his head. "As our meeting at the door informed me, you aren't my typical starry-eyed customer who oohs and aahs at the flashy stuff. So I'm skipping that and getting to the useful goods." he said, then pulled out a small plastic container. It was transparent, and through the surface, Jack could see a number of seeds that were separated by dividers, and equally labeled. "These here are seeds of all kinds that you may find useful in the seasons to come." he said, holding forward the case.

Jack eyed the seeds curiously, looking over the names and information on each. Strawberries, pineapples, dragonfruit, passionfruit, guava, aloe, and many many more. Some he had heard of, some he hadn't. And some he could hardly pronounce. "Most of these are out of season." he said, reading the small writing on the case. "And out of climate it seems."

His inner salesman showing again, Won raised a finger. "True, but each is marked with the specific climate they thrive in, as well as the season. Yours are over here." said Won as he reached over and pointed at the ones at the far end. "Also, preparation for the seasons to come may be the difference you need to make a good harvest." he said with a wide smile.

"Maybe, except I don't have any way to store the seeds. And if they sit without certain moisture control, then they would just go bad." he said as he looked at all the different markers. "Wait...what's this one?" he asked, tapping on an unmarked container with only a single, blueberry sized seed in it.

"Huh?" asked the salesman as he looked at the one pointed out. "Oh, that's called the Heart of the Goddess. It's a flower, not a crop." he stated, waving his hand as if telling Jack to ignore it.

Looking up, Jack continued his questioning. "Why is there only one?" As he asked the question, he tilted the container slightly to try and get a better view of the seed.

"They are extremely rare. Unfortunately, they are also very expensive. I thought with my skills it would be easy to sell it to people, but the problem is that it has a bad reputation of not growing. It's a roll of the dice, sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't. And because it's so rare, I'm required to tell people about that so that they aren't just buying them up and dumping them in a house pot." he said with a sigh. "So, the combined efforts of its price, its unusual habit of not growing, and the agriculture law that says it can only be sold in climates that it can be grown in make it a very fancy money sink for me." he said bitterly.

"Is Mineral Town within the habitation zone for it?" asked Jack curiously. Won just nodded. "I'll take it." he said. The Asian man looked at him dumbly for a moment before snapping out of his stupor.

"You want to buy it?" he asked, almost incredulously.

"How much is it?" asked Jack as he walked over to the duffle bag.

Won turned and looked at him incredulously. "It's seven hundred, for one seed!" he said, as if expecting Jack to scoff and throw his enthusiasm out the window.

But Jack just turned and looked at him. "Turn away." he ordered, the look on his face showing that it wasn't a request. The salesman did as he was told and spun around so he couldn't see the farmer. Jack saw him turn, then went and retrieved some of the cash from his duffle bag. When he returned, he slapped down seven fresh bills, all with 100 stamped on them on the table in front of the man. "Do you want me to buy the thing or not?" he asked in response the man's sheer look of awe.

Won shook his head, and his salesman mode turned back on. "Uh, of course. We are in the habitable zone, I have warned you of the risks, so all that's left is the transaction." he said, eyeing the bills that sat under Jack's hand.

"Are you going to be back before summer?" asked Jack curiously as he ruffled the bills in his hand. The man just nodded frantically.

"Yes yes, I leave and come back every week." he said as he removed the seed and put it into a separate container specially made for it. "This is the protective casing. Only remove it once you intend to plant it, because it is a very sensitive seed." he said, sliding it over the table to the farmer. Jack handed over the money, and Won smiled happily, as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

"Good. I'll buy more seeds when the time comes. Right now I'm just acclimating, so I won't need that many." he said as he rose and opened the door to his farmhouse, letting the puppy free into the open air and allowing morning air into the house.

Won got to his feet and headed to the door after stowing the cash in his bag. "Thank you for your patronage very much." he said, bowing respectfully.

"No problem. And Won?" he asked. The Asian man turned to him before leaving. "Leave the accent out of Mineral Town if you wouldn't mind." he requested. The man sighed, but nodded.

Suddenly, both men were startled by a loud shriek from the farm next door. Jack and Won both spun and stared as a blaze of pink rushed off the farm via the back entrance and began running through the wooded area. They just looked at each other, then Jack closed the door to his house and walked towards the bridge leading to the forest. Won simply tipped his hat and turned back towards the farm entrance.

He crossed the bridge from his farm to the woods and made his way through it at a leisurely pace. He had yet to see the forested area, and the girl apparently wasn't being chased, as her footprints were the only fresh ones out here. So he thought he'd take his time a bit and enjoy the scenery. It took a couple of minutes before he finally found her, lured to the large pool at the bottom of a huge hill. She sat, crumpled in her dress at the stone laid edge of the pool, leaning over her own reflection and crying.

He took his time approaching, not wanting to surprise the girl. Finally, he came up and sat next to her. When she heard him plop down, she looked up at him slowly. Quickly, she tried to cover her sniffling and sobbing, but failed miserably. He looked over at her and just held his arms out in a questioning manner, as if giving silent assent. She immediately threw herself into his arms and began crying again. He simply wrapped his arms around her and comforted her as she let all her hurt out.

As she wept, he noticed that this was the exact spot from his dream back in the hotel. He had laid here with that girl, her head in his lap as he was about to sleep as well. Then, the pool...changed. Looking up at the crystal clear waters, he almost expected it to happen again. But much to his relief, the immaculate pool stayed the same.

After another few minutes of crying, Popuri finally seemed to run dry. She just sat sniffling in his arms, red-eyed and tired. He simply held her, his hand gently stroking her head as she sighed into it. "I'm sorry..." she finally said softly. "I didn't mean to make you suffer with me."

He just gave her a small smile. "I'm not suffering, though seeing you like this does make it feel like it's going to rain." he said, then he gently lifted her chin and looked into her eyes. "What's wrong?"

She just sighed and leaned her head against his chest again. "Three of my chickens disappeared. From the signs of struggle, it looks like a wild dog managed to get through the fence and took them away." she said with another heavy sigh. "I swore it wouldn't happen this time. I set up the fences so perfectly, but nothing I do seems to matter." she said sadly.

He just stroked her hair gently, still startled by how...pink it was. "I'm sure nobody blames you for it. And if you want, I'll come over and take a look at your fences for you. See if there's anything I can do. Alright?" She looked up at him, then gulped and nodded. "Good, now cheer up and let me see that oblivious smile again." he said, smiling himself.

Popuri sat up and smiled widely, blushing at the same time. "Thank you Jack." she said, scrubbing her eyes. Jack nodded, and the girl stood up finally, allowing the farmer to do the same. "Sorry again for...throwing myself at you. I'm not usually so...open." she said, her face turning pinker by the second.

He just shoved his hands into his pockets and smirked. "Don't worry, I'm used to ladies throwing themselves at me. It's the burden I must bear for these good looks." he said jokingly, striking a dramatic pose. In all honesty, he had never had a girlfriend before. The closest he had ever had to one was the young girl when he visited the farm while Mr. Alexander was still alive, and even they left with just a kiss. His experience was severely lacking.

As if sensing the joke, she puffed up and smacked him on the arm. "Oh stop it." she said, a half smile on her face. They both laughed and began walking back towards their farms.

OoOoO

Elli now sat at her desk in the hospital, doing the same thing she did every single day...except for Wednesday when the hospital closed. She sat at the desk, went over medical reports, signed in Jeff early to go ahead and get it out of the way, made herself a cup of herbal tea, sorted through her medical files on the villagers to see if anyone needed any checkups, began studying from a new medical journal that the doctor had finished, put away the medical journal to tend to Jeff, sent him on his way, then got back to reading.

The word routine felt comfortable to her, unlike many others. To them, it spoke of monotony, the boring droll of day after day doing the same exact thing the same way, no excitement in their lives whatsoever. But it was different for Elli. To her, routine meant safe, comfortable, cozy. Routine meant that the villagers weren't dying, or contracting something that she couldn't help. It meant that everybody was completely fine. And if that meant sacrificing what some would call 'excitement', then she was perfectly content with that.

So, when Basil, Mary's botanist father and the librarian herself strolled in, she looked up in surprise. Standing up, she looked at them with concern. "Is everything alright?"

Basil smiled at her, assuring her. "No need to concern yourself Elli. Just need to speak to Tim about a few of the new herbal medications coming in." The nurse just smiled, then nodded.

"He'll be in his office." she said, taking her seat again as Mary sat in one of the lobby seats and cracked a book open. She continued her own work when suddenly her head snapped up. "Hey Mary." The librarian lifted her nose from the book and looked up at the nurse. "You're smart with weird stuff right?" she asked curiously.

The librarian scoffed and placed her marker in the book, setting it aside. "If by weird you mean that I have extensive knowledge in a wide range of subjects, then yes. I'm smart with weird stuff." she said, a bit miffed at the unusual compliment.

Elli bowed her head apologetically. "Sorry, I didn't mean any offense. But, you've met Jack right?" she asked. Mary's eyes widened as she nodded.

"Yes, I have. Why do you ask?" she inquired, suddenly becoming more interested in the subject.

Elli looked aside, wondering if she should be sticking her nose into business that wasn't hers. Technically, she had a right to inquire since he willingly chose to take his shirt off on the farm however. She turned to Mary with a look of determination. "Jack...has a tattoo on his back. It's unlike anything I've ever seen, and was wondering if you could help me with its meaning."

Mary smiled, then nodded. "I'll do my best. What did it look like?" she asked, now fascinated at the mystery. After Elli's description of the tattoo, she sat pondering for a moment. "I'm not entirely sure. Wolves are laced throughout history as symbolic figures. Pointing out which one it is, or if it has meaning at all will be difficult without some kind of key marking." she said shrugging. "After all, he could have just got it on a whim."

Elli scratched her chin curiously as she thought. "What about the red circle around it? It didn't look like it was just a backdrop, as there were light markings on it as well. But the wolf obscured most of them."

Mary just shook her head sadly. "Again, without some kind of key symbol, it's just a red circle." she said with a small sigh. "But I will investigate this further to see if I can get any kind of answer." said the librarian, who received a grateful smile from the nurse.

"Thank you." As if perfectly timed, Basil exited the doctor's office and strolled up to the dark-haired young librarian, who nodded to him. "Keep me updated!" said Elli as they left. Mary waved to her, and the pair left the nurse to her routine.

OoOoO

Ann sat at the counter again, bored as usual as she cooked up meals and slid beers down the counter for her usual patrons. Even Popuri happened to stop by for a small fizzy drink known as a Tinkerbell. Ann cocked an eyebrow as the girl entered and ordered the drink. "You alright?"

Popuri nodded and took the strange, greenish drink from the bartender. "Yeah, I'm fine now. A few of the chickens got attacked in the night. There's no sign of them, so a wild dog probably took off with them." Ann nodded and patted the girl's shoulder sympathetically.

"I'm sorry. Do you need to cry?" asked Ann, used to the girl having to cry and explain how she felt. But was shocked when the pink haired girl shook her head.

"I already did. Jack helped me." she said as she took the drink and sat over at one of the tables. Ann just eyed her curiously, but turned towards the door again as the devil walked in himself. When Jack entered, both Popuri and Ann smiled at him sweetly, the pink-haired girl waving.

The farmer waved back, then made his way over to the counter. He smiled down at the red-haired girl. "Hey." he said as his ears picked up the playing radio, which Doug was fiddling with. The innkeeper smacked the side of the thing as it spit out static.

"Hey heartbreaker. Want something to drink?" she asked with a sly chuckle. But he eyed her playfully.

"What's the matter Ann, jealous?" he asked, making the girl stop and blush, then glared at him for making her do so. "Just a beer please. And your fine company if you don't mind." he said as he grinned. She nodded eagerly and got both of them a drink before hopping over the counter. They sat together at a table near the radio, so that she could still instruct Doug on fixing it.

"So, what's up?" she asked with a smile as she took a swig of her own drink.

He lifted his own and inspected it thoroughly at first. Ann took a swing at him, but he ducked easily, chuckling as he did. "Just making sure I'm not gonna end up in the dirt again." he said as he finally took a drink and sat back. "So, we had an arrangement I believe."

She looked at the table sheepishly, nodding. "Yeah, I know." she said, playing with her hair again. "Sorry, it got a bit busy mid week because of the new shipments."

He shook his head. "It's no problem. But...I'd really like to get planting before summer, if for no other reason than practice. And..." he said, holding up his hands. "I was wondering if you could help me out a bit." he said, now with a sheepish expression himself.

She just smiled brightly. "Of course! I'll be there directly after work so we can get it taken care of today." she said. He just smiled in relief.

"Thank you..." he said bowing his head to the table.

"No problem! Hey, I'll be right back. I'm gonna get you some of our leftover dinner. Not sure how well you cook, but you liked the stew...so..." she said as she hopped up and headed for the kitchen. Suddenly, with a loud smack from Doug, the radio finally snapped to a radio station.

 _"-with thousands dead as a result of the lack of support from either country. In related news, no word yet from anyone about the missing General from the National Army. His disappearance from the field of battle has not been acknowledged by either the insurrectionists, claiming a kill, or the allied armies, leading us to believe that he may still be alive. From the looks of things, General has either fled from his duties, or has in fact been killed and the insurrectionists have yet to release the news due to unknown reasons. Further speculation -"_

Jack's teeth immediately began grinding as he heard the news. "Please turn the radio off..." he asked sharply. Doug looked over at him curiously, before turning the volume down.

"Something the matter son?" he asked, concerned at the look on the young farmer's face. Jack's expression was now tense. His teeth clamped together, his fists clenched, his eyes wide, and a subtle growl coming from his throat.

"No...I just...hate the news." he said, his voice obviously strained.

Cliff, who had been sitting at a different table during the scene saw Jack's keys fall from his pocket as he stood rapidly. Not usually one to interfere, he thought about just ignoring it. But he knew he'd be pretty irritated himself if he found his own room key lost. Getting up from his seat, he walked over and picked the key ring up from the floor, then reached up and placed his hand on the farmer's shoulder.

It was so quick that he didn't even see it happen. Cliff just suddenly looked up and saw the farmer glaring down at him with his arm twisted painfully as if it were about to break in Jack's grip. "W-Wha?" was all he could manage before he realized how painful the hold he was in actually was. "Oww..." he complained.

"Jack?" asked Doug as he stepped forward. But Jack released Cliff's arm and looked around, as if he had just realized where he was.

The farmer looked down at Cliff on the ground and took a step back. "I-I...I'm sorry." he said before dashing out the door.

Cliff sat up, rubbing his shoulder and looking at the swinging door incredulously. Doug approached and helped him to his feet before dusting him off. "You alright son? He got ya pretty good there." said the innkeeper.

Cliff allowed himself a small smile. "Yeah...I'm fine."

OoOoO

Jack had run all the way back to his farm as fast as his feet could carry him. He blazed past the winery and blacksmith before finally screeching to a halt in front of his house. Reaching into his pocket, he searched for the key to the house, but found it nowhere. He turned his pants pockets inside out, and still no key. His anger growing, he just growled and slammed his back against the door before sliding down into his rear end, where he sat with his hands over his face.

He sat for what felt like hours, thousands of thoughts running through his head, and all of them unwelcome in his new environment. Finally, he was startled out of his self repair mode by someone clearing their throat. When he looked up, he saw the young man who was always moping around the inn standing before him holding his keys, and oddly enough, wearing a smile. "You dropped these. I tried to give them back, but...yeah."

"Oh...thank you." said Jack as he stood up and took the keys. "Look...I'm sorry for what happened back there. But you surprised me..." he said, but the drifter cut him off.

"You can fight." said the smiling young man. Jack just looked at him oddly. "You can really fight, right?" he asked, this time more of a question.

Jack just sighed and rubbed his head. "Yes, I've been trained in fighting." he said, surrendering to the question. He had almost taken the man's arm off, he at least deserved to know that much.

"Can you teach me?" asked Cliff, his face a mask of excitement now.

Jack just eyed him curiously. "Why do you want to learn to fight?" he asked, then Cliff turned away, his face returning to his usual mopey expression.

"I...I just want to learn to fight." said the young man. But Jack crossed his arms and glared.

"I can assure you that lying to me isn't going to up your chances." he said with a droll tone.

Cliff just sighed and nodded. "Can we go inside first?" Jack turned and opened the door, allowing them both back inside. Wherever the puppy was, he was apparently content to be there, as he seemed to have no interest in the house. When Cliff walked inside and saw the large TV, he stopped. "Woooah...where'd you get that?" he asked.

Jack looked at the TV, then walked towards the couch. He plopped down onto the cushioned furniture. "It was my grandfathers. Not sure where he got it from, but it was here. Now, back on subject..." he said, looking towards Cliff.

Cliff plopped down onto the couch and held his head in his hands. "Look, I don't want to get anyone else involved." he said, looking over at Jack pleadingly. But Jack just stared back at him silently, making him sigh again. "When I came here, it was because I was running from someone. Someone who can hurt me, and wants to very badly. I won't get into specifics, but if he finds me, I'll likely never walk again." he said depressingly.

Jack raised an eyebrow. "Is that why you're always moping around?" he asked curiously.

Cliff scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "Yeah. I've been here for a few months now...just waiting. Waiting for the day when one of his guys tracks me down and finds me here. Having that same thought everyday can kinda drag you down, ya know?" he asked, looking for some kind of approval from the farmer.

Jack, after a long moment of contemplation, finally nodded. "Yes, yes I do. Which is why you're going to make an exchange for me." he said, Cliff's interest piquing at the words. Jack just leaned forward. "I don't tell anyone you're here, you don't tell anyone I'm here. I teach you to fight, you work on the farm for me, paid. That's the exchange."

"I...don't know what to say." he said, stunned at the offer.

"Say yes, because you're going to anyway. Then go home and get some rest, because we've got some work tomorrow and not all of it is training." he said as he went to his fridge and opened it. "Goddammit..."

"Something wrong?" asked the drifter as he looked over from the couch.

"I have no food. I've been eating at the inn everyday so I didn't even notice. I'll have to go get some before the store closes." he said as he closed the door to the cooler. "In any case...have you said yes yet?" asked the farmer.

"Oh yeah...I mean, no. But yes...you know what I mean." Cliff said as he facepalmed himself. Walking over to the door, he opened it and smiled happily back at Jack. "Thanks again. You have no idea what this means to me." he said, then left for the inn.

When the vagabond was finally gone, Jack just sighed to himself. "What the hell am I doing?" he asked in irritation as he rubbed the stress out of his face.


	5. A Deeper Connection

OoO( 5 )OoO

Jack made it to the store about ten minutes before it finally closed. As he opened the door however, he was met with a heavy sigh. "Look, we're closing soon so could you...oh!" said the girl in jean shorts as she saw Jack enter. Smiling brightly, she put her arms behind her back. "Hi Jack."

"Hey Karen." he said, returning her smile. "I just came by to get some food, but if you're closing..." he was saying, but she cut him off.

"Nonono, it's alright. We've still got a few minutes left. So please go ahead." she said as she tried to discreetly push the closed sign face down on the counter.

He just smiled and nodded, then began looking around the shelves. He had never provided for himself before, so he wasn't exactly sure what he was looking for, but he grabbed a basket and began to stuff some of the food into it. After a minute of doing this, she walked over and looked at the contents curiously.

"Cereal, a loaf of bread, a bag of rice, and olive oil?" she asked, looking up at him curiously.

He just smiled nervously. "Ummm...before now I've usually had my food given to me by other people. I've never really had to make it myself." he said, then sighed. This was going to be harder than he thought.

Karen nodded with an amused smile. "I hear ya. Here, let me help." she said as she grabbed the basket. "You're just getting stuff for home, right?" she asked, getting a nod from the farmer. "Good, because we've got plenty of stuff here that requires no cooking." she said, then looked at the ground, slightly embarrassed. "I've had to use it more than once..."

He looked at her inquisitively, but she didn't elaborate. Instead, she put a large pack of noodles into the basket and moved down the shelf and grabbing some more of the goods. When she was finally finished, she rung them up at the counter and stuffed them into two separate paper bags. She grabbed one of the bags as he grabbed the other, and he looked at her curiously. "Planning on coming with me?"

"It's two bags. You won't be able to see if you carry them both." she said as she spun the sign on the door so that it now read **Close** '. "Besides, we haven't gotten to know each other yet. So why not?"

"Alright then..." he said as they began walking down the road together. "What's your favorite color?" She just rolled her eyes at him. "What?" he asked with a chuckle.

"You're a real deep guy Jack." she said, smirking playfully. "It's purple for the record." she tapped on her purple over vest as if to prove her point. "So, before coming here, what did you do?"

He stopped in his tracks at the question. She turned to look at him curiously. "I was...kind of a jack of all trades really, no pun intended. When someone needed something done, I usually did it." he said, hiding his surprise behind his smile. Immediately trying to change the subject, he asked, "So, what's it like here anyway?"

She looked at him, as if scanning him like a sci-fi android or something. Then finally, her examining look changed back to a smile. "It's boring. Same stuff happens every day, but...it's kinda nice like that. In a place this small, you don't have to worry about your stuff getting stolen, or getting robbed, or anything like that. It's a nice quiet life." she said, a bit of a sad tone in her voice.

He looked at her curiously. "You don't like the quiet life, do you?"

She shook her head with a sigh. "I like it here, but I also want to travel. I wanna see new things, experience the world. Maybe when I've done all that, I can return and happily live here." she said, then turned to him again as they continued past the winery. "How about you, have you ever traveled?"

Jack thought for a moment. He had no intention of pulling his past life up at all, but then again, his travels weren't always bad, and didn't always relate to his work. Not to mention, sometimes he did have genuine fun while visiting other places. So, this time, he decided not to bend the truth. "Yeah, actually. I've been all over."

Her eyes widened considerably. "Really!? What was it like! Please, tell me!" she said, begging him for any scrap of the outside world.

"Well, it depends on where you are really. Any place in particular you've wanted to visit?" he asked curiously as he shifted the bag to his other hand.

"I hear France is nice, have you ever been there?" she asked, her tone much more chipper than before.

"I have...but not nearly as long as I would have liked. But it was nice. Lot's of ancient buildings, amazing food, and museums to see." When he looked over, he noticed that she was looking at him like a starving woman staring at a cooked steak.

"Wow! That's really awesome! I wish I could go and see it someday." she said with another huff. Then her head popped up. "Oh! What about Japan or China?" she asked curiously. He looked at her oddly. "Ann shows me all kinds of weird fighting movies. I was wondering if it's really like that over there."

He just chuckled at her as they came up to his door. He opened it and allowed her inside, right before the puppy bolted in as well, apparently having had his fill of nature. "Yes actually, both. But most of the kung fu movies I've heard about are based in the 1900s to 1950s. So it's much more advanced with huge cities and technology. But still pretty culturally different. Asian cities are a lot more crowded and compact than most cities."

"Compact? How do you mean?" she asked, unsure of his meaning.

"Well, in this village for example, there is a supermarket, blacksmith, and bar. In Japan, it wouldn't be odd to see all three of them in the same building instead of having their own separate spaces." he said scratching his chin. "It's really crowded there, and considering it's an island, you kind have to make room wherever you can. So a lot of small businesses end up cramming themselves together not just to save money, but also for convenience."

She scoffed at the idea. "Yes, because who wouldn't want to shop for groceries, get slammed, and fine tune your farming equipment all at the same time." she said sarcastically, making him laugh.

"You'd have to see it for yourself to understand." he said as he shook his head and set the groceries on the counter. "Regardless, it's amazing just walking through the markets and looking at all the stuff they sell, just having the people moving around you. The smells of food, the entertainers singing and dancing, the salesman throwing their catch of the day, all of it was amazing."

She continued to look at him in awe until she felt something furry around her feet. Looking down, she immediately gasped, then fell into a fit of throwing affection at the small animal. "Awwww! He's so adorable!" she squealed. Suddenly, she lifted him and looked at his underside. "Oh my...his ribs are showing! Has he been eating alright?" she asked, looking up at him concerned. He shrugged slightly as he started putting groceries away.

"He was like that when I found him on the mainland. I fed him and he followed me, so I just brought him with. He should fatten up here in about a week with the regular meals I've been giving him." he said as he opened the fridge.

"What's his name?" she asked as she held the tiny wolf pup up to look at him, an action that made her look like she was imitating a scene from one of his childhood favorites, "The Lion King".

"I...don't know. I haven't really given him one yet." he said as he began packing away the food into the fridge. "Any ideas?"

She began to think of a few when she saw something odd on the table next to the couch. Setting the creature down, she reached over and picked up the small picture, examining it curiously. The girl in the picture was young, she couldn't have been over ten years old. She had very foreign features however that made her stand out to the shopkeeper. Her eyes were slightly angular and exotic like from one of Ann's movies, yet her eyes were as green as the trees outside. Her hair was long and down to her shoulders, and as black as coal, which accentuated her lightly tanned skin. She was beautiful, with a large smile showing bright white teeth in the picture. "Is this your sister?" she asked, not really seeing any similarities between the two. When she didn't get an answer, she looked up at him, and was startled by the expression of anguish on his face.

"No. Just a friend." he said as he strode over to her, then took the picture straight out of her hand. Turning around, he went to his room, where she heard a loud slam, followed by him coming back into the kitchen.

Karen just looked at him with a guilty expression then stood up. "I'm sorry...I shouldn't be snooping like that."

"No, you shouldn't." he said with a tone as cold as ice. She took a step back, the tone hitting her at her core. How he had shook her so badly after just having met him was beyond her. She still felt a heavy pang of guilt however. Finally, he slammed the door to the fridge and sat on the couch, rubbing his head gently. "I'm sorry, you didn't know. It just..."

"She passed away?" asked the girl awkwardly. He just nodded. "What was her name?"

He chuckled to himself. "I don't know. I just called her Emma." he said softly, his voice coming out very tight and strained. When Karen looked at him questioningly, he elaborated. "She spoke a dialect only known in her village. Each village out in that area has its own language because they're completely self sufficient, needing nothing from the world outside of their borders. So I wasn't able to get her actual name."

"Why Emma?" she asked, sitting next to him and placing her hand on his leg gently.

"It's short for Emerald. I named her after her eye color." he said with a desperate expression. "Can we talk about something else please?" She nodded rapidly.

"Oh, I know! How about going to the Goddess Festival with me?" she asked excitedly.

"What's that?" he asked, leaning back on the couch, still well aware that her hand hadn't moved from his knee.

"It's a festival we have every year to pray to the Harvest Goddess, and thank her for the harvest." she said as she stood up, finally removing her hand. "Festivals are kinda our thing. We have them because we have nothing better to do. But, there's dancing, food, music, and they have merchants that come by and sell all kinds of stuff." she continued spinning around as if dancing in the actual festival. Then, she stopped dead, her face turning pink. "And...of course, the girls of the village dress up as the Harvest Goddess and dance. So..."

He just sat forward and smiled. "So you'll be dancing, dressed as the Goddess?" he asked, getting a shy nod from her.

"I'd like it if you came. It's a lot of fun." she said, giving him a pleading look.

After a minute or so of silence, he finally nodded. "Sure." At that word, Karen sighed in relief at not having embarrassed herself.

"Glad to hear it. Be sure to dress nice though. It is a special occasion after all." she said playfully.

OoOoO

When her shift at the inn finally ended, the young redhead finally locked the door to her room and hopped down the stairs. On her back, she had a large backpack, filled with the different DVD's she had collected over the years, as well as the player she used to watch them with in her room. Also she had a pair of clean clothes packed away, as farming was usually dirty work. "Dad! I'm going out!" she shouted into the back.

"Don't be out too late." he said from across the counter. She jumped, startled that he was actually out front with the patrons instead of in the back, where he always was. She looked at the ground sheepishly.

"We were actually gonna watch some movies together. So I might be out for a long while." she said, knowing her father and what he was about to say.

"With that Jack boy?" he asked, a smile covering his face and his eyebrow lifting curiously.

"Dad...If you..." said the girl, growling at him.

"Just be sure to let me know when the wedding is." he said, picking up a glass and beginning to polish the inside as she roared at him, but he never lost his smile.

"Bye dad!" she growled and slammed the inn door behind her, leaving the man to chuckle to himself. When she finally made it to the farm, she walked up and was about to knock on the door, when it suddenly swung open.

Karen walked out with a small smile on her face. When she saw the redheaded girl, she stopped suddenly. "Oh, hey."

"Hey bitch. What's up?" asked Ann curiously as Jack came out as well, looking at her oddly for the name calling.

"Nothing, I was just helping him with groceries he got from the store." said the brunette girl with a friendly smile. Ann nodded, then smiled at Jack.

"Ready for duty!" she said, saluting to him. He nodded and she stepped inside to drop off her bag. Then they both went out to the field as Karen left for home.

Jack, after fetching the necessary tools, began to work with the girl to dig up the ground in the field. It was a small patch, still close to the house and shipping box, and had been cleared of any debris and weeds already. As Ann began to dig up rows of the soft soil, Jack sat on the boulder next to it and watched her. "So, she doesn't mind you calling her that?" he asked curiously. He had noted that Karen had had no reaction whatsoever to the name.

Ann looked up from her work. "Huh? Oh, the bitch thing?" she asked, getting a nod from the farmer. She just chuckled. "Not really. It's my term of endearment for her. She and I are pretty good friends." she said as she wiped the sweat from her brow. "Now, no more non-farming questions." she said with a commanding tone. He chuckled and nodded. "Now, here's how you do this, so pay attention." she said as she began to plow up the rows of dirt again.

OoOoO

When they finished, Ann was sweating profusely and covered in dirt, but they had planted multiple rows of seeds. Once they finished, they tossed the tools into the shed outside and returned to the house. "Mind if I use your shower?" she asked, already heading to the bathroom with her change of clothes.

He just looked up, his own face burning now. "Uhh...sure."

"I'll just be a few minutes. Go ahead and hook up the player!" she shouted as she turned on the hot water in his shower. He just nodded dumbly and pulled the machine out of her bag.

Ann, who shed her clothes and stepped into the steaming shower, let her mind drift as she often did. Usually, her mind drifted to mundane things, like whether she had finished cleaning the numerous rooms in the building, or even sometimes imagined herself in the fight scenes of one of her favorite movies, imagining herself a kung fu master. But this time was different.

This time, she was nervously aware of how close Jack was, and how easily he could just walk in here. She had only known the farmer a couple of days, but already she felt kind of a connection to him, unlike anything else she had found in the town. Then again, in a town this small, that wasn't hard. Cliff, she just wanted to pound his sad puppy face into the floor. Rick, he had his head so far up Karen's ass that he didn't really even socialize with anyone else. Grey was an asshole, and not the good kind. The kind who shrugs to any question you ask, and ignores you to go pout about his grandfather some more. The doctor, Tim, was really cute. Unfortunately, Ann had always felt that he was Elli's territory. The only other eligible guy she knew was Kai, and he only came around once a year for summer.

Her problem was, she was a tomboy without any guy friends. Every guy in town her age was a complete pansy, or wasn't around enough to call a friend. And though she knew that Jack had his own issues, she felt something she had never felt from other guys. The possibility of an actual male friendship. She heard a loud thump from the living room, which snapped her out of her daydream and reminded her that she was showering.

After getting out and drying herself off, she threw a long t-shirt over a pair of knickers and walked out into the living room, drying her hair with the towel. When she did, she stopped dead in her tracks, her eyes wide. Jack, somehow, had managed to get himself tied up with the cords from her DVD player. He was face down on the ground with one arm tied to his head, and the other was wrapped tightly with a cord, holding it behind his back. She stood there stunned as she watched him struggle against the seemingly living tentacle cords.

Finally, she broke. She fell onto her rear end laughing harder than she had ever laughed before, causing tears to streak her freckled cheeks, and giving her a sharp pain in her gut. The farmer looked over at her, already red faced from the ensuing battle against the DVD player, but now from embarrassment as well. "You know, you could help me!" he said as he tried to stand again, only to lose his balance as a cord that looped behind his knee pulled his leg out from under him every time he tried to rise.

She rolled onto her stomach and hit the ground with her fists, laughing louder as if she were a cartoon character. He sent her a glare that clearly implied revenge, so she finally got to her feet, holding a stitch in her side as she helped him get free of the tangles of cords. When he was free of the electronic kraken, she flopped down onto his couch, still holding her side and still chuckling to herself. When she could breathe again, she had to ask. "Have you ever worked a DVD player before?"

He sat on the other end of the couch and just shook his head. "I haven't had the occasion to watch many movies." he said with a grumpy tone.

She just got to her feet and ruffled his hair. "Oh stop it grouch. I'll hook it up for you." she said, still smiling as she leaned forward and began to sort out the cords. What she hadn't realized was that her t-shirt didn't cover her entirely when she bent forward. He just groaned and covered his eyes with his hand, not allowing him to gaze at the white cotton undergarments that she exposed to him.

"Ann..." he said, his own smile now covering his face. She turned her head, still in the process of hooking the player up, her hair no longer restrained to the braid. "Your back door is open." he said with a chuckle. She immediately stood up straight, an iron grip on the bottom of her t-shirt.

She glared at him with her face as red as her hair. "Did...did you see!?" she asked. He just held up his fingers and inch apart. She growled and leapt onto him, grabbing him in a headlock. "How dare you defile me!" she shouted, before letting out a war cry like a Mongolian barbarian. He managed to slide his head out from her grip, before wrapping his arms around her. His fingers dug into her side quickly, moving back and forth in an attempt to see if she was ticklish. She froze immediately and began to laugh uncontrollably at his tickling.

The young bartender laughed loudly, flailing desperately to try and escape. But his grip was too strong. She knew that if she didn't do something, she might literally pass out from laughing so hard. So she reached around his body with her legs, locking her ankles together behind his back, then used her strength to put him in a punishing scissor lock. Both of them continued their relentless assaults, both faces red with determination. Finally, Ann's finely toned thighs won out. Jack fell to one knee and the red headed girl fell backwards, taking the farmer with her.

After the crashing fall, the barmaid opened her eyes to a sight that made her freckles nearly invisible. She had fallen backwards, and Jack forwards right on top of her. Not to mention with her legs already wrapped around him. They were in a very compromising position. She didn't really know what to expect from him if she made eye contact, but she couldn't just awkwardly let the moment go. She just looked up to him, her face burning more than it ever had before.

"Ann...please..." gasped Jack, his face about as red as an apple.

Her eyes widened slightly. "Oh...sorry." she said, releasing her long forgotten scissor lock. He gasped violently and fell on top of her, only making her predicament more frustrating. But, he didn't stay. He immediately lifted himself off of her form, just looking down at her curiously. She did the same to him, each one giving each other a very thorough, searching gaze.

He just smiled warmly. "Sorry, didn't mean to...well..." he said, referring to the position he had fallen into. She just chuckled and pushed her hand against his face.

"Oh please Jack. I've seen the way you look at me. You just couldn't wait to get a taste of this gingerbread cookie." she said sarcastically. He just laughed, then started tickling her again. "Alright stahp!" she shouted, crawling away from him. He helped her to her feet, and the redheaded girl finally hooked up the player and popped in one of her favorites, a classic known as "Ip Man". As she the movie started, they both sat on the couch awkwardly. A few minutes into the movie, the farmer reached over and pulled the girl down onto the couch so that her head was laying on his lap.

After the shock of being pulled down, she looked up at him, then smiled. Together, they continued watching the movie, any awkwardness gone, Jack leaning against the arm of the couch, and Ann using him as her own personal pillow.


	6. Inquisition

OoO( 6 )OoO

When Ann awoke, she found herself in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room. Pulling the blankets from herself, she looked around at her surroundings. She was in Jack's room. She'd had to walk through his room to get to the bathroom when she had taken a shower before. Back then she didn't take the time to actually look around. Now, she got up and saw several oddities about the farmer.

He seemed to love books, as there was a large stack on the dresser with all kinds of fantasy-like titles on them. He had almost no pictures however, either of himself or anyone else. The only picture in the room was stuck in the mirror on the dresser. She approached it and stared at it in the dim light. She was young, very beautiful, and from the clothes she wore, she wasn't from the city. Moving from the picture, she walked into the kitchen area of the house and clearly saw the farmer sleeping on the couch with a woolen blanket wrapped around him.

She just smiled to herself, then walked over to him. "Time to get up sleepyhead." she said as she ruffled his hair. He groaned and pulled the blanket up over his head. "Hey, don't make me beat your ass again." she said chuckling as she reached down and ripped the blanket off of him completely. The farmer went rigid as she did, then began to flail on the couch as if throwing a tantrum. She giggled, then walked away with the blanket over her shoulder. But when her head turned, she looked out the window and froze. "Oh shit..."

Jack sat up on the couch and rubbed his face into wakefulness. "What?" he asked, looking at her through heavy-lidded eyes.

She stood frozen in time as she saw the sun break on the horizon. "What time is it?".

He looked over at the clock on the DVD player. "About six in the morning. Why?" Immediately the girl took off for his room and practically dove into a pair of jeans. After putting her socks and shoes on as well, she bolted out of his bedroom to find Jack now making coffee. He looked over and saw her. "Where are you going?" he asked, eyeing her oddly.

"My dad is going to kill me..." she said as she headed for the door. "You can keep the movies here for now. If he burns me at the stake, you can have them. If he ever lets me see the light of day again, I'll try and come by later." she said swinging the door open. But, she stopped before fleeing out into the rising sunlight. "Oh, and thanks Jack." she said, giving him a genuine smile. "I really needed last night." she said, then bolted from the door and down the road.

He just sat down and scratched the puppy's head as it ran up and began sniffing him. Inhaling deeply, he took in the scent of the coffee before drinking from the chalice as if it held the elixir of life. The puppy jumped up onto the couch with him and stared at him curiously. Jack looked back at the puppy. "You think I should go explain myself to her father, don't you?" The large blue eyes of the pup just stared at him blankly. "What the hell do you know?" he asked, scoffing at the dog before taking another sip. He sat there for another ten minutes, flipping through the four channels available, and finishing his coffee off. Looking over at the small creature, he noticed it was still staring at him with its large Gray eyes. "Alright! I'll go!" he shouted before getting to his feet and walking to his room to get dressed.

When he had finally gotten his clothes on, which today was a sleeveless shirt and a worn pair of work jeans, he left the room, filled the dog's water dish, then laced up his boots before leaving for next door..

When he arrived, he saw Rick outside, examining the fences that had been hit the night before. Popuri was near the coop, spreading grains wildly for a swarm of clucking hens. When the girl looked up, her face lit up like a Christmas tree. "Hi Jack!" she shouted, waving at him as he walked down the road connected to what could laughably be called the main road. He hopped over their gate and waved back to her.

"Hey, what's up Pinkie?" he asked as he smiled courteously. She giggled at the name, then turned to Rick.

"Rick! Jack's here!" The sandy-haired young man looked over, and to Jack's opinion, could definitely have a more pleasant expression on his face.

"Something the matter?" asked Jack curiously. He knew the expression of disdain had been for him, as it only appeared when Jack was announced. But why was another question.

But the bespectacled lad immediately deflected the question. "I'm fine. It's just that there's something odd about the fences." he said, trying to change the subject.

"Jack said he'd come by and see if he could help out." said the girl, ever the cheerful one. She was apparently not only oblivious to Jack's anger, but her brother's as well. But the farmer nodded and walked over to the fence and began examining it.

Rick huffed. "It's not like he can find anything I haven't already." said the young chicken farmer as he crossed his arms over his chest. Jack popped up almost immediately after he had examined the dirt around the tilted post.

"Do you like chickens Rick?" asked Jack with a raised eyebrow.

The girl's brother looked at him stupidly. "Of course I do! I'm a chicken farmer!" he said in irritation.

Jack, now resting his arms on the crooked post tilted his head. "Know anyone who likes them more?" asked the farmer.

Rick just scratched his head. "Well, my sister and mother love them more than me for sure." he said, then froze. Turning to Jack, he eyed him suspiciously. "Why?"

Jack stepped aside and pointed to a few footprints that led off into the wooded area behind the farm. "Because, your chickens weren't taken by dogs. They were taken by a human." he said as he hopped back over the wooden post, landing next to the sandy haired lad. "And Rick, if something breaks your fence, you don't just find clues by staring at the fence."

"Who would come and take our chickens?" asked the girl, her face puffing out in an adorable representation of anger.

Jack just shrugged. "Does anyone live out that way?"

"Just Gotz, the woodsman who does most of the carpentry in the town. But he's a friend of the family. He's always been welcome to come by for dinner." said Rick, his arms still crossed.

"I'll have to check with him anyway. He might have seen something that could help us find the one that did it. In the meantime, do you have a hammer?" asked Jack as he dusted his hands off.

"I can fix the fence Jack." said Rick in a standoffish manner. Jack's eyes narrowed at the young man, causing him to take a step back from the intensity.

"I made your sister a promise, and I intend to keep it. Do I have to ask the question again?" asked the farmer, still paralyzing Rick with a dark glare.

"N-No...I'll go get one." he said, turning towards their own shed.

OoOoO

Jack had spent a couple of hours fixing the fence, and reinforcing it so that even a car would have trouble getting through. When he finished, he had been invited inside to finally meet the duo's mother Lillia. And once again, he was stunned by the fact that the woman had a full head of pink hair, causing him to stupidly ask, "Is there something in the water here?" The woman, still beautiful as her daughter, just looked at him oddly.

He had deflected any questions about the remark, and finally made his escape after thanking her profusely for another biscuit. He walked down the road to the inn and opened the door slowly, in case anyone was waiting with a shotgun on the other side. When he did, he just saw a table with Gray and Cliff sitting at it, both chatting amiably, and Ann standing at the counter again. When she saw him enter she smiled again. "Hey Jack!" she said happily. Cliff and Gray both turned to him, Cliff smiling and nodding and Gray just looking at him studiously, as if he didn't know what to make of him.

Jack nodded back to Cliff and walked up to the bar, hopping onto one of the stools. "So...anything I should be worried about?" he asked curiously, eyeing the door to the back.

But the barmaid shook her head. "Nah, he's cool. I told him we didn't do anything, just fell asleep. And he was alright with it." she said as she began to polish another glass, setting the clean one aside. Then she looked at the ground in irritation. "Though he did growl and grumble about locking me in the inn for not returning home, or at least telling him I was staying the night." she said.

Jack just chuckled and leaned his head into his hand. "Well, as long as he doesn't have a shotgun waiting for me."

"Oh, he has a shotgun. But don't worry, he won't use it on you Jack." she said smiling brightly. But her smile did nothing to diminish the look of horror on his face.

"Forgive me if I'm less than confident in your optimism." he said with a sigh. Ann chuckled, then leaned forward onto the counter, as if to whisper to him.

"So, weirdest thing...Cliff is actually alive. He's like...talking to people and stuff." she said, almost in awe of the fact. "What the hell did you do to him?"

"I'd...rather not talk about it. Me and him have an arrangement, that's all I can say." he said before getting to his feet. "Speaking of which, I should probably go and get a few things done before going back to the farm."

"Like?" she asked, tilting her head curiously.

"Well, first I need a new hammer. So blacksmith." he finished. Turning to Cliff, he nodded towards the door. The young vagabond, got up and began following him out. "See you later Caboose!" he shouted as he left.

"GO BURN IN A FIRE!" shouted the redheaded barmaid.

"What was that about?" asked Cliff, surprised at the outburst.

But Jack just shook his head. "Long story." he said, and together they began making their way for Saibara's blacksmith.

"Hey Jack!" came a voice from the doorway of the inn. They turned and saw Gray running up behind them. When he caught up, he put his hands in his coat pocket and just stared at Jack. "My grandfather is a bit under the weather. So if you need any help, I'll go ahead and take care of it."

After a quick transaction with Gray, in which Jack bought a new hammer, the young apprentice filled Jack in on how to upgrade the tool for better efficiency with larger rocks. Jack just looked at Gray with irritation. "Ann told you, didn't she?"

Gray just smirked. "Did you really try to break it with your fists?" he asked, handing the newest hammer in the shop over to the farmer.

Jack merely sighed and took the tool. "I almost had it!" he shouted sarcastically, turning to leave the shop.

"Hey Jack!" shouted the young blacksmith. The farmer turned to him curiously. "Me and a couple of guys are having a drinking night tonight at the inn. You game?"

Jack thought for a moment, then nodded. "Alright. But I'm a bit of a lightweight, so no heavy stuff for me." he said, waving him off.

OoOoO

"Alright, start plowing." said Jack as he tossed the hoe to the young vagabond.

Cliff caught the tool, then looked at Jack questioningly. "But...I thought..."

"Let me make something very clear Cliff. You are working for me, and training with me. That means every day you come here, you're doing both of those things. And if we were to start with the training, you wouldn't be able to farm." he said seriously. Cliff just gave him a look of dread.

"Oh...that's...comforting." he griped as he lifted the hoe.

The farmer threw him a bottle of water. "If you want comforted, go learn from the black belts that teach fourth graders. You learn the way I learn. No belt, no showing off, no comforting. You work, you train, and maybe in between we can be friends." he said in a very serious tone. "You can walk away if you like. But as long as you're here, you listen. Deal?"

Cliff thought about it for a moment, then nodded. "Deal. No whimpering, no whining." he said, then bowed to Jack.

Jack cocked an eyebrow at him. "What are you doing?"

Cliff stiffened, looking at him awkwardly. "Oh...uhh...don't students usually bow to their teachers?" he asked, his cheeks burning slightly in embarrassment. Jack put a hand to his forehead and laughed lightly, making Cliff feel like a dunce.

"We don't need the pomp and formality of those who teach for money. I'm not going to try and blind you, or make you think there's anything mystical about what we're doing. Just listen, that's all I need." he said. Cliff just nodded. "Good. Now, let's get started on the work."

OoOoO

The inn was a little more packed than usual that night. The usual crowd went to Duke's wine cellar, where they held a card game every week. For them, it was a night without women, responsibilities, and formalities.

Instead, the inn was packed with a number of the village's younger crowd. Karen, Elli, and Mary all sat around a table, while Gray, Rick, and Tim sat at another. Ann was busy making and serving food and drinks, while the social ladies of the village sat at their own table, relentlessly gossiping to each other.

"I should really get back to the hospital." said the doctor as he looked at his watch for the third time in a half an hour.

"Calm down Doc. Jeff can spare you a night to relax." said Ann as she set a beer in front of him, getting a glare from Karen as she did. But the redhead looked around curiously as she set the other drinks in front of their recipients. "Hmmm...where's Jack? And for that matter, where's the mannequin?"

"I gave him the invitation." said Gray as he took a drink of his beer. Suddenly, everyone in the tavern froze as the door opened. Everyone's head turned, looking at the figure as he dragged himself inside. "Cliff?"

The young man looked up at the others, his eyes wide and his form hunched. He had a look of horror on his face as well, one that spoke of a human being traumatized. Behind him came Jack, with a large smile on his face. "Evening everyone." he said happily.

"What happened to Cliff?" asked Ann, her own face a mask of horror at the zombie-like drifter.

"Him? He's alright. Just had a bit of training is all." he said as he sat at the table with Gray, Rick, and the doctor. The physician got to his feet as he looked at Cliff.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of him." he said as he strode towards the young man. But Gray caught him by the coat and pulled him into the chair again.

"I don't think so." said Gray as he glared at Tim. The doctor sighed and planted his chin on his palm. "Now then, have a seat. We've got more drinks coming." he said to the two new arrivals. Jack walked over and sat in one of the chairs. Cliff dragged his feet heavily and sat down slowly, just staring at the table's surface.

"Oh good...the old Cliff is back." said Ann with a huff as she set their drinks down.

Jack just smiled at her. "Don't worry, he'll be good as new in no time." he said as he patted the vagabond on the back. Cliff immediately cringed in pain as he did.

Ann just snorted as she walked off. "Can't wait."

Over at the girl's table, Karen and Elli were chatting amiably while Mary sat in thought. She had been racking her brain for the past two days over the tattoo that supposedly rested on the back of the mysterious farmer's neck. But nothing stood out to her. She had checked her books numerous times, resulting in more frustration as she found dozens of references to wolves being used in every mythology. Perhaps Elli was wrong. Maybe Jack had gotten it just because he thought it was cool.

She looked up and saw the two other girls looking at her expectantly. "I'm sorry...what?"

"You were pretty deep in thought there. Something important?" asked Karen as she took a swig from her glass of rum. Mary hadn't even touched her own drink yet.

"No, just a side project." she said with a shrug.

Karen eyed her curiously, before smiling widely. "Were you thinking of Jack?" asked the shopkeeper. Mary stiffened immediately. "Aha!" said Karen, pointing at her as if she had caught her red handed.

Flustered, and blushing lightly, Mary glared at Karen. "I was not!" she said, trying to keep her voice down so that the boys at the table next to them couldn't hear.

"What's the matter Mary? Crushing pretty hard?" asked the young woman as she picked her glass of rum up and sipped from it again.

"Oh Karen stop it." said Elli as she looked over to make sure the guys were deep into their own conversation. Then she leaned over and whispered to Karen. The brunette girl's eyes widened as she looked over at the farmer.

"Really?" she asked, bewildered. Elli just nodded, drinking her tea as if she had said nothing at all.

Mary, finally having gotten over her flustered defense, leaned forward. "Elli's the only one who's seen it." she whispered.

The nurse shook her head, blushing at the implication. "Nonono! Ann saw it too!" she said in a hushed, but forced voice.

"That...I...did." said the barmaid as she plopped down next to them, kicking her feet up as she swigged beer from a bottle. They all looked at her. "What? Like your eyes wouldn't be all over it if you saw it too!" she said to the librarian and shopkeeper.

Karen grinned. "I heard that you had a little more than your eyes on him last night." Immediately, Ann froze, then turned to look at her.

"What?" she asked in a deadly tone.

"I heard it from my mom too. She said you stayed the night at his house." said Mary meekly as she finally took a drink from her mixed beverage.

Karen's face practically melted into a Cheshire Cat smile. "Oh really? I hadn't heard that part."

Ann leaned forward with a deadly glare. "Wipe the smirk off your face before I put it, and the rest of your head up your ass." she ordered threateningly. Karen giggled and sat back. "Nothing happened. We watched movies, and fell asleep while watching them. That's it." she said, sitting back with a huff.

"Oh, so you're saying that nothing happened?" asked Karen. Ann nodded. "So you won't mind me asking him to the Goddess Festival?" Both Ann and Elli sat up straight at the question.

"I...I don't care. Do what you want!" said Ann, her attitude flaring as bright as her hair now. Elli just stayed silent.

"Oh, sorry. Already did." she said taking a casual sip of her drink. Ann growled and was ready to shove her beer bottle straight up Karen's nose.

Mary, who had been quiet up to this point, intervened. "Do you want to see it?" she asked curiously. The others looked at her questioningly. "The tattoo."

"What are you going to ask him to strip down right here?" asked Karen, who scratched her chin thoughtfully. With alcohol swimming in her brain she contemplated for a moment. "Hmmm...that might actually work. How much liquor do we have?" she asked playfully.

"I know how." said Mary, before leaning over to Ann and whispered in her ear.

Ann perked up, then smiled. "That might actually work."

Back at the guy's table, Jack sat with his arms crossed, glaring at Rick, who was glaring right back. Gray and Tim looked back and forth between the two, and Cliff was laying with his face flat on the table. "What?" asked Jack in an irritated fashion.

"What what?" asked Rick nonchalantly.

Jack leaned forward, his glare sharpening. "You've had an attitude with me all day, and you're going to explain it to me before I bury you head first in your own ass.".

Rick just looked away. "Look Jack, I don't know what you're..."

"Oh give it a rest Rick." said Gray as he rubbed his own head. "We all know it's because of Karen." said the young blacksmith. Rick spun his head back around, giving the young blonde a sharp look.

Jack looked at Gray curiously. "What about her?"

"Rumor has it that you two are going to the Goddess Festival together." he said, then slammed the rest of his beer.

Jack looked at him a moment, then dawned a look of recognition. "Oh yeah, she did mention something about that."

This seemed to make Rick snap. "You don't even remember!?" he asked, trying to keep his voice quiet.

Jack glared back at the sandy-haired boy. "What do you expect from me, she asked me and then changed the subject!"

Then, Rick's eyes widened immensely. "She...asked you?" he asked incredulously. Jack just nodded. At that point, Rick stood up and walked away from the table. "I should go take care of my mother. I'll send Popuri for her turn." he said, irritation laced into his voice. He even shot Karen a dirty look, which she was oblivious to when he left.

"Well...that was awkward." said Tim as he watched the young man go.

"You're telling me. I'm the one in the middle." said Jack, then he turned to Gray. "So are him and Karen...?" he asked, unsure of how to finish the question.

But he didn't have to, as Gray shook his head. "He has a thing for her. Like, real bad. But he's never done anything about it. I guess he thinks that one day, she'll just wake up and be like, "Oh Rick! You've been there for so long! Take my body!"" said the blacksmith, sending Jack into laughter. Even Tim cracked a smile, something Jack never thought was possible.

Then Jack turned to Gray. "So Hephaestus, how about you? Any girls you like?"

Gray immediately turned his hat down. "Not really." he said, avoiding eye contact. But Jack jumped on the sign immediately.

"Oh really?" he asked, eyeing the blonde young man as he pocketed his hands. "Cummon, who?"

"Is he going to be alright?" came a voice behind the farmer, interrupting him. Jack looked up and saw Ann standing next to Cliff and poking him in the face.

"Yeah, he'll be fine when he comes into work tomorrow." said Jack as he waved her off. Suddenly, a loud groan of displeasure ripped from Cliff's throat. "See? He agrees." he just said with a smile.

She looked from the drifter, back to Jack, then smiled. "Alright then. Anyway, so we had an idea gentlemen. How about a round of 'Never Have I'?"

"I'm game." said Gray. Cliff groaned.

"I should really be going..." said Tim, again looking at his watch.

"Tim's in. Jack?" asked the blacksmith.

"I'm...not really sure what that is." he said, scratching his head.

"It's a drinking game where one person starts. They have to say 'Never have I ever', and add something that they've never done. Anyone who has done that has to drink." she explained, staring at Jack smartly

He looked at her warily. "Drink what?" he asked, making her roll her eyes.

"Shut up. Jack's in. Any objections?" she asked to the others. Tim looked like he was about to say something, but Gray slapped a hand over his mouth.

"Nope." said the young blacksmith with a smile.

"Good. Push your table over and we'll get started." she said, walking back to the girl's table. Jack and Gray got to their feet, lifting the table and scooting it over nearer to the girls, leaving Cliff to fall forward onto the floor. The doctor helped him to his feet, then pulled him over to the new table position.

When they were all seated again comfortably, Ann stood to start filling drinks. It was at this time that Popuri walked in and looked at them curiously. "Hey everyone." she said quietly. The others waved, and Jack smiled.

"Hey Pinkie. Glad you're here." he said, making her face tinge slightly with red as she took a seat.

The pink-haired girl sat next to Jack and looked around at the others. "Rick was pretty mad when he came back. Does anyone know what happened? He won't tell me."

"He's mad because Karen's a bitch." said Ann as she put the beer pitcher on the table.

"What the hell did I do!?" asked the young shopkeeper incredulously.

"In any case, we're gonna play a drinking game now. And Elli, alcohol is required." said Ann as she gave the nurse a scrutinizing eye.

Elli glared at her. "Fine. Just give me something less potent." she said, pushing her empty tea glass away. Ann set in its place a glass with red wine in it, then sat down.

"Alright, since you just came in Popuri, we're playing 'Never Have I', and you can start." said the innkeeper.

"O-Oh, alright." she said, cradling her beer gently. "U-Um...never have I ever watched television." she claimed. Jack, Gray, Elli, Ann, Karen, and, though reluctantly so, Tim all took a drink. Even Cliff managed to lift an arm long enough to take a swallow of his whiskey.

The torch was then passed to Cliff. "Never have I ever tortured a human being." When nobody drank, he glared at Jack. "No cheating you bastard."

The farmer chuckled, then took a sip of his own drink just to give Cliff the satisfaction. Then it was his turn. "Never have I ever cooked for myself." he said. Karen, with a look like she had tasted something sour, took a drink, as well as Mary and Cliff. By now, the vagabond had enough strong liquor in himself that the pain had started to subside, and he could finally sit up straight.

Then it was Mary's turn. She gave a small smile and looked around at the others. "Never have I ever gotten a tattoo." she said making the girl's eyes all widen. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Jack's smile wain somewhat. But he raised the glass and drank regardless. Surprisingly, so did Gray and of all people, Elli. Everyone turned to look at her, wide-eyed.

She immediately tucked in on herself. "What? It was in college..." she said, looking away from them with embarrassment.

Ann got to her feet and cracked her knuckles as she approached Elli. "Alright, let's see it." she ordered eagerly. But Elli covered herself immediately.

"You will not see it. Nor will anyone who I don't want to!" she said, hitting Ann with a glare that might have turned her to stone.

"Alright alright..." she said, then looked at the other two who drank. "Alright you two. Off with it. Let's see them." she commanded. Gray just stood up, then took his coat off. It was that moment when everyone in the room realized that they had never seen the young blonde man with his coat off. Down his right arm was a long, serpentine dragon that coiled around his bicep, and down to his forearm. The head ended on his wrist, where it shot a gout of flame down towards the hand.

"Woah..." said Karen as she ogled the tattoo. Gray started to get slightly flushed as all the girl's attention focused on him. "Where did you get it?"

Gray cleared his throat. "My grandfather sent me to Japan for a few months to study with a few of his old friends who had worked in a smith their entire life. While I was there, one of them had a tattoo like this, and he said it made his fire burn hotter, his hammer more precise, and his steel stronger."

"And you believed him?" asked Mary skeptically.

Gray just smirked. "No, but I knew it would piss off my grandfather." he said, then went to put the coat on. Many shoulders shook in laughter at the remark.

"Nuh uh. No more hide'n'seek. You're showing that off tonight." said Karen in a bossy tone, before she looked directly at Jack. Gray obeyed, just sitting down in his t-shirt. Jack sighed, then turned around and pulled his shirt down slightly, exposing his neck. Everyone gasped in awe at the design. The wolf, it's pointed deadly teeth, fiery breath, and the red orb around. Karen stood to her feet and leaned over to get a closer look. "It's so...realistic." she said, preventing herself from reaching out and touching it. Mary captured the image in her brain for later.

"Where did you get it?" asked Mary, pretending not to have known about it before.

"I got it...when I was in America. I saw another guy with the same one so I thought it looked cool." he responded. Elli looked slightly disappointed, but Mary just smiled.

"That's nice." she said, sipping her drink with a determined smile. She saw clean through him and the white lie he had just fed to their faces. And now with a clearer picture of the emblem burned into her perfect memory, she now had all she needed to find out what she wanted to know.

Though she had been fascinated by the tattoo at first, Karen's eyes had drifted slightly to the muscular arm. Mary, to get her attention, cleared her throat. "I believe it's your turn Karen." she said.

Snapping out of her daze, the young shopkeeper nodded. "Oh, right. Uhhh...never have I ever kissed a guy." she said. Once again, Elli took a drink, and the whole room looked at her once more. Nobody noticed the fact that Popuri had taken a drink as well.

"My god...my sweet innocent Elli is a wild woman..." said Ann as she looked at her, like she was staring at a stranger. "College?"

But the nurse shook her head. "No, this was before I ever left here."

"Who was it?" asked Karen, who received the same death glare that Ann had received earlier. Karen just pouted, then turned to the guys. "So, none of you have ever kissed a girl before?"

Gray just smirked at her. "That wasn't your statement. You said you never kissed a guy. To which I have not." he said. She growled at him, shaking her fist as if she were ready to deck him. Next on the list was Elli.

"Never have I ever kissed a girl in this village." she said, getting a wide, evil smile from Karen and a crestfallen look from Gray.

Jack and Gray took their drinks. But instead of Karen focusing on Gray, this time she looked at Jack in shock. "You've kissed someone?" she asked, almost hurt by the proclamation.

He nodded simply with a shrug. "I was here when I was a child. And while I was here, there was a girl who would always come to the farm, where I was staying and play with me. But I wasn't living here." he said, everyone's attention focused on him. "When I had to leave, she took me by surprise and leaned in to kiss me. I returned it."

Popuri and Karen gave a loud, "Awwwwww..." their eyes sparkling at the romantic thought of childhood love.

Elli just turned to Ann with a smile. "Your turn."

"Woah, wait, hold on!" said Cliff as he looked at Jack. "Who was it?"

Jack just smirked at the vagabond. "Don't make me ask Elli to glare at you." he said, causing Elli to laugh in the background. "None of your business."

"Never have I ever had sex!" said Ann, trying to catch someone off guard. Cliff, Gray, and Tim all took a drink. But Ann was staring at Jack. "Really?"

He shook his head. "Sorry to disappoint." he said shrugging. She growled at him.

"Tim, your turn." said Elli with a smile.

"Never have I ever had time for this..." he said, getting a swat in the back of the head from Gray. "Never have I ever been camping." he said, rolling his eyes. Cliff took a drink, as well as almost everyone at the table aside from Elli and Mary.

"A real conversation starter." said Ann sarcastically as she shot the doctor a deadpan look. Then she looked at Gray. "Alright chuckles, your turn."

The blacksmith, relieved at having been overshadowed by Jack on the kissing question, had forgotten his. After thinking for a moment, he thought of a new one. "Never have I ever gotten into a fist fight." he said, looking at the others.

Ann, Karen, Jack, and Cliff all drank. Karen and Ann glared at each other, then at the two men. The redhead looked at Cliff expectantly. "Now that you have a personality, spill."

He just scratched the back of his head nervously. "It was back in highschool. Some guy had beef with me because his girlfriend thought I was cute."

"He ate with you because she thought you were cute? That doesn't make much sense." said the pink-haired girl. They all looked at her, doing their best not to laugh at the obvious oversight.

"Poppy, to have beef with someone, means you're angry at them." said Karen sweetly. Popuri got a dawning look on her face.

"Ooooohhhh." she said smiling brightly.

"Anyway, he beat my ass." said Cliff with a disappointed sigh.

"And you two?" asked Jack, who had been perceptive enough to notice the glares between the two. They just looked at each other, then looked away.

"I may have called Ann ugly when we were younger." she said. Ann cleared her throat. "And...maybe said that she looked more like a boy..." Ann looked at her, then coughed. Karen glared at the redhead. "Would you like a cough drop for your throat?"

"No, I'm fine." said Ann as she looked away nonchalantly.

Karen just sighed. "Fine! I said she probably even has a penis!" said Karen as she crossed her arms and looked away.

"So I beat the pigtails off her lily ass." said Ann with a smirk.

"Oh shut up." said Karen. She turned to Popuri. "Your turn Poppy." she said, trying to change the subject.

Popuri thought for a moment. "Never have I ever dyed my hair." she said, smiling at the thought.

Jack, Karen, and Elli drank. Once again, everyone looked at Elli. "Wha?" asked Mary, who had been silent up to this point, but was so taken back by Elli's claims that she had to speak up.

"College." said the nurse, ignoring the awed looks.

"What color?" asked Gray curiously.

"Green." she said, the others pulling back in shock. "Then blue." she said, taking a sip from her drink, her cheeks flushed slightly from both the attention and the alcohol. "Then pink."

"All of my illusions, dissolved with a single glass of wine." said Ann as she laid her head back and draped her hand over her forehead.

"Oh stop being a drama queen." said the nurse with a playful glare.

Cliff stepped up. "Never have I ever fired a gun." he said. Jack, reluctantly took a drink, as did Gray and Tim.

"Tim?" asked Elli curiously.

He just looked at her. "My father took me hunting a lot as a kid." he said, shrugging.

Ann looked at Gray. "I worked part time as a security guard while I went to college. Just something to do to kill a weekend, and we had target training."

Cliff looked at the two of them, then Jack. "Well?"

"No comment." stated the farmer firmly. Cliff was about to inquire further when the look that Jack gave him silenced him. Turning back to Gray, he shook the bone chilling glare from his mind.

"So Gray, did you ever kill anyone?" he asked with a cheeky smile.

Gray just rolled his eyes. "Never have I ever killed anyone." he said. But a wave of confusion went around the table as Jack drank the rest of his glass, then slammed the tankard down onto the table. Everyone eyed Jack in surprise.

"I think I'm done playing now guys." said the farm as he got to his feet.


	7. Confrontation

OoO( 7 )OoO

Gray opened the door to the smithy and stepped out into the clouded, rainy day. After he locked the door behind him, he pulled the collar of his coat up and began to shuffle quickly through the torrent of water towards the building at the northwest corner of the village. When he reached the door, he opened it up and walked inside, seeing the small librarian sitting at the desk. When the girl looked up, she smiled at him. "Hey." she said simply.

"Hey." he said back to her, a small smile of his own on his face. He walked over to the shelf, pulled his usual book off the shelf, and sat in one of the cushioned chairs to read. He sat for a while in the chair as the librarian continued her work, typing away on a large typewriter. The 'tak tak tak tak, kaching' of the machine not doing anything to disturb him.

The two of them had been in an awkward state when they were last here. A bookshelf nearly collapsing had been the cause of a close encounter for the two, one that he wasn't able to forget. She made him promise not to tell anyone, but that didn't stop him from thinking about it quite a bit. So he continued to come back to the library in case she needed any more help. Or...until he could grow enough of a spine to talk to her without collapsing furniture threatening her existence.

His mind drifted a bit as his eyes scanned the mind numbing book he was reading about the proper method of removing impurities from steel, back to the night where he was almost cornered into revealing his and Mary's accident. But then Jack... His face darkened. That was an awkward night for everyone. Jack had admitted to the group under oath of the game that he had indeed killed someone before. Nobody was really sure what to make of that, however one thing was clear. Jack had stormed off, ignoring anyone's pleas to wait up. And for the past few days, he had all but closed himself off from the others. Anytime Cliff visited, he put him to work, did whatever it was that they did afterwards, then sent him home. No spare words for anyone, not even Ann, someone he figured was at least the equivalent to Jack's girlfriend right now.

The young man just sighed to himself, something Mary apparently had heard. "Is something wrong?" she asked curiously.

He looked up, stunned to hear the question. Then reached up and tilted his hat down. "Uhhh...no. I was just...thinking about the other night."

"At the inn?" she asked solemnly. He nodded, and she seemed to slouch slightly. "Yeah, that kind of upset the balance of the community. At least for us 'younger crowd.'" she said, using air quotes and rolling her eyes at the term her mother used for them. He just chuckled, making her smile slightly. "What do you think he did?"

He just shrugged. "I'm not sure. He's too mysterious a guy for us to really tell. But he seems really broken up about it." he said, scratching his chin. Then he looked at her sharply. "Do you think it was an accident?"

She tilted her head. "Hmmm...it's possible. But if that were the case, I don't know if he'd willingly say he killed them. But the remorse is there, that's clear." she said. "We might have to consult Ann, or..." she said cringing. "Karen. They seem to know a little bit more about him than we do."

He just nodded. "Oh...I had a quick question for you." he said, sitting up. She looked at him inquisitively. "You're smart with weird stuff, right?"

She scoffed, crossing her arms and glaring at him. "You too Gray!?" she asked, huffing.

He just chuckled at her. "I'm just joking Mary." he said, making her calm down. "But there was something I hope you could help me out with. Back at the inn that night, before we started the drinking game, Jack called me something. Could you elaborate for me?"

The young librarian adjusted her glasses with a small smile. "I'll tell you what I know."

Gray nodded, leaning back again. "When he was asking me about...well, about any girls I liked..." he said, clearing his throat nervously. "He called me Hefastis. What does that mean?"

She tilted her head again, thoughts spinning through her head rapidly. After a few seconds, she had that adorable small smile on her face again, something Gray couldn't get enough of. "He probably called you Hephaestus."

"Yeah, that was it." he said, nodding rapidly.

She nodded. "It's a good name for you. Hephaestus, or known as Vulcan by the Romans, was the Greek God of blacksmiths. As well as numerous other things, sculptors, metallurgy, fire, and volcanoes. But he was believed to be the blacksmith of the gods, creating their weapons, tools and chariots for..." she said, then stopped dead in her tracks.

He looked at her curiously, reaching forward and waving his hand in front of her face. "Uhhh...Mary?" he asked worriedly. She didn't respond however. It was as if something had paralyzed her in place. "Mary, if you don't move, or at least say something, I'm going to kiss you again." he said with a sly smirk.

"Vulcan!" she said as she dashed around the table and began scrambling through her numerous books. When she found one of them, she flipped the pages rapidly until they rested on a page with a lot of information sprawling on it.

Gray, who was looking at it upside down, walked around the desk and looked at it with her. "What is it?" he asked curiously.

"It was a planet the whole time!" she said smiling brightly.

He looked over the page, seeing different information about some Greek god. "What was?"

"This!" she shouted, pointing at the red orb on the page. "Mars, or Ares, the God of War!" Gray looked at the drawing of the planet Mars on the paper. Then he looked over at her, just as lost as he was before. She sighed and flipped the page, showing diagram of an abyssal black wolf.

Suddenly, the mystery dawned on him. "His tattoo?" She nodded excitedly. "But...why does he have Ares tattooed on his back?" he asked, bewildered.

"I..." she said, then planted her chin in her hand, thinking deeply for a moment. "I'm not sure...I was so caught up in the excitement of finding out what it meant that I forgot that part." she said, plopping down in her seat again. "I guess that's the next step. At the very least, I can update Elli."

"Uhhh...alright." he said. Then he sat down again, thinking to himself. After a couple moments of silence, he looked at her again. "Hey, I don't like Jack being closed off."

She sighed. "Me neither, but...what can we do?" she asked shrugging.

"Maybe there is something we can do." he said, an idea forming in his head.

OoOoO

Day in, day out. Working, suffering, eating, sleeping. That had been Cliff's life for the last four days. Coming back to the inn, he almost always collapsed and passed out immediately on the bed, just to wake up the next morning and repeat the process again. He had questioned himself many times over the last few days, whether he should continue working and training with a man who claimed to have killed someone. But he knew deep down that if he didn't train, he might as well hand his life over to the Kaluzny brothers.

So he went to work again and suffered again, and came back again. But, this time, when he came back to the inn bone tired and his body practically blazing with pain, he found that most of the others had gathered there as well. Karen, Popuri, Ann, Mary, and Gray had all gathered into the inn and were talking heatedly to each other.

"I don't think he'd do it intentionally." said Ann as she looked away, her face crestfallen.

"Ann, you've known him all of two weeks. You don't actually know what he's capable of." said Karen as she sighed to herself.

But the redhead stood firm. "Even so, I've been around him long enough to know what he's like. He wouldn't do something like that purposely." said the barmaid said as she crossed her arms defiantly.

Popuri puffed herself up importantly. "I agree with Ann. Jack is a sweetheart."

"We're just going in circles with this." said Mary as she rubbed her head in irritation. But when Cliff walked in, everybody looked up at him. "Cliff!"

"What's going on?" he asked tiredly.

Ann jumped up and pulled him over to the table, despite his painful protests. "We're talking about what to do about Jack." she said, sitting him in a seat and feeding him a glass of whiskey to ease the pain. He drank eagerly and nodded.

"Okay, I'm game. What's the plan?" he asked curiously. He regretted the words however, after everyone looked at him in dead silence.

"We were hoping you could tell us." said Ann, her eyes locked on him.

"Why me?" he asked incredulously, his arms akimbo.

"You've been over there every day, more than anyone else has. So likely, you know more about him than we do." she replied eagerly.

"How would I know? You're his girlfriend, don't you know something?" he asked with a glare. Everyone in the room froze when they heard the redhead inhale sharply. "Uh oh..." said Cliff as he looked up at Ann.

Karen inched over towards him. "Uh, Cliff...I give you about five seconds before she registers what you said. You may get to the church if you run fast, and bar the door behind you.".

Cliff went to stand, but the fiery woman jumped on him and grabbed one of his ankles, twisting sharply. He shouted in pain as the maid ankle locked him and put him into submission. "Please! No more!" he shouted pitifully.

The others sighed to themselves and pulled the pair apart before continuing the conversation. "Well, something has to be done. We can't just let him sit on his farm and brood for the rest of his life! He still has to take me to the Goddess Festival!" Karen pouted with her neat eyebrows furrowing.

Ann glared at her as she shook herself loose from the young woman's grip. "Yeah, because that's what's important right now." she said, then turned back to Cliff. "Alright Scooter. Spill the beans! What is this training that you and he do after work?" she asked, kneeling next to the groaning farmhand.

"He teaches me to fight..." he said in between moans of pain.

They all looked at him. "Why do you need to know how to fight?" asked the redhead as she prodded him in the side with her finger, causing him to flinch.

"None of your business!" he growled, getting to his feet.

Ann cracked her knuckles with an evil grin. "Make me beat it out of you!"

He slammed his foot down and glared. "Then try it!" he said, stepping up to her challenge. The redheaded girl immediately took a step back in surprise. She just stared at him widely, shocked by the presence he gave off when challenged.

Karen snickered at the two. "Uh oh, I think Ann fell in love again." The redhead whirled on her and dove like a lioness onto the brunette. The others just sighed, realizing that they'd gotten exactly nowhere.

OoOoO

Jack sat in his house, watching a cooking infomercial about some kind of device that chops everything with the slap of a hand. The puppy, still unnamed at this point, sat with its head on his lap, looking up at him with its water-colored eyes. But Jack just ignored the look, and continued to pet the young beast as he watched the man slap the contraption once, twice, turning a potato into cubes.

The rain had always been soothing to Jack. So when it started storming earlier, he thought it would at least allow him to relax. But, he was so on edge because of the inn situation that he couldn't even be granted that. He just sat, staring at a boring channel on his unusually large television.

It was then that he heard the knocking on his door. The puppy's head popped up and stared at it curiously. Jack turned and looked at the door. Standing up, he opened the door, expecting the vagabond to be standing there, ready to say something. But to his surprise, in front of him stood the nurse, Elli. She had an umbrella to protect her from the rain, and was shivering lightly from the cold wind.

"Hi." she said, smiling lightly when he opened the door.

"Hey..." he said, staring at her confused. Stepping aside, he motioned for her to come in. She stepped inside and folded her umbrella up. Though it had apparently kept the rain off her head, the same couldn't be said for the rest of her. Today she had worn a long sleeve black shirt and a pair of jeans, and both were thoroughly soaked.

He put her umbrella aside, and immediately ran to get her a towel. Coming back with one, he looked her up and down. "You really should get out of those before you get sick." he said, feeling awkward about telling her to undress.

She just chuckled. "I'm fine. Don't worry." she said sweetly.

"You are a nurse, right?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Very astute of you Jack." she said with slight sarcasm. He just chuckled and pointed to his room.

"If you are going to stay here for a bit...which given the circumstances I imagine you are, then you are not allowed to do so soaking wet. At least hang the clothes up in front of the fireplace so they'll be dry before you leave." he ordered, handing her the towel.

"And what, per se, shall I wear in the meantime?" she asked, her hands now on her curvy hips as she gave him a threatening eye.

"I have a bathrobe in the bathroom. It's a big fluffy one, so don't worry. It'll cover everything. Including the tattoo." he said, chuckling as she glared again.

"Alright, fine." she said, walking into the back room. Jack pulled some pieces of lumber that he had chopped out of the branches in the field and stacked some of them in the fireplace that had gone unused up to that point. It took him a few minutes to start the fire, but once he had it going, Elli came back out in his thick black bathrobe, her soaked garments on a clothes hanger in her hand. Walking over, she hung them on the mantle, so that the fire could dry them faster. The puppy, who had just watched the interaction at the door, ran up to her now, panting happily. She knelt down and scratched the small creature's head, smiling brightly. "How adorable."

"Yeah. Wanna give him a name?" he asked causing her to look up curiously. "I still haven't come up with one yet."

She smiled gently. "Perhaps later." she said as she stood up again before sitting on the couch. He sat down on the opposite end, and they stayed there uncomfortably for a long moment before either of them said anything. Elli, was the first to break the silence. "I know."

His heart almost stopped at the proclamation. But he calmed himself, reminding himself not to assume anything. "You know what?"

"I know what you're going through." she said, scooting a little bit closer.

"How could you?" he asked, turning his head away.

"You didn't do anything illegal, or that could get you into trouble, or you would never have brought it up. You feel guilty over it. You're making it your fault, even though it wasn't." she said, staring at him with a gentle expression.

He looked up at her, anger flaring in his eyes. "How the hell would you know!?" he asked harshly. But no matter his tone, she gave him a sad smile.

"I saw the look on your face Jack. I know, because I once had that same look on mine." she said, brushing a few strands of her hair away from her face. "A few years ago, I was in the same position as you are." she said morosely. The melancholy tone in her voice immediately killed his anger. "When I was in college, I was sent many times to assist surgeons and other doctors in their duties. A way of learning from experience."

"Do you want some coffee?" he asked. She looked up at him. "If we're going to be talking for a while, you should get something warm in you." he offered. She smiled, but shook her head.

"I prefer tea." she said with a pretty smile.

"I have some...but I don't know how to make it." he said, scratching his head. She stood up, then grabbed his hand and dragged him to the kitchen. Taking an old kettle, no doubt well worn from his grandfather, she filled it with water and set it on the stove. Once the kettle was boiling, she took the sealed jar of tea leaves and scooped some out into what looked like a thin paper bag.

After a few minutes, steam started shooting from the teapot, resulting in a loud whistling sound. He watched as she gracefully took the pot from the burner and set it on a cool one, then turned the stove off. Lifting the lid off the kettle, she placed the bag of tea leaves into the pot, and closed the lid on the string. Smiling up at him, she said, "It's that easy."

He just scratched his head again. "I guess it is." he said. Opening a cabinet, he pulled out two mugs for them. After the leaves had steeped, she pulled the tea bag free from the kettle and poured them each a glass full of the steaming green liquid.

Once they were back on the couch, she continued. "One time, while I was working with a surgeon on shift, an emergency call came in. Someone had apparently been in a horrible accident and was bleeding internally and externally." she said, taking a deep draw from her steaming mug. "It's always different, the routine surgeries and the emergencies. The routines, you have time to prepare for. You expect things will go business as usual."

"Not this time..." he said calmly.

She nodded, her breathing calm as she continued. "When the doctor began asking me for things, I just froze up. There was so much blood that I couldn't look away from it. He eventually sent me out of the room. I sat there in the nurse's station, unable to move, unable to close my eyes. Because every time I did, I just saw blood." she said, shivering as she recalled the image. He reached out and gently squeezed her hand, surprising her. But she just squeezed his back. "They came by a short time after and said he hadn't made it. He lost too much blood, and ended up passing away shortly after I left."

"And you blame yourself?" he asked solemnly. She looked at him and shook her head.

"I used to. I told myself everyday for months that if I hadn't frozen up, if I'd just snapped out of it, he could have lived. He could still have lived the rest of his life, if it wasn't for me." she said, then sighed sadly. "But, after a few months, the man's daughter had apparently heard about me. She approached me and gave me a hug out of nowhere, saying that it wasn't my fault. She had talked to the doctor, and he told her that with his injuries, it was a miracle that he'd made it to the hospital still alive. Saving him was, unfortunately, not possible." she said, taking a drink. Then she looked him deep into his eyes, her brown, earth-colored eyes meeting his own dark ones.

"I suppose I should tell you my side now." he said, feeling a sinking feeling in his gut as he said the words. But, she just shook her head, much to his surprise.

"You'll tell me when you're ready. You don't owe it to me, and I would certainly never intrude on something so close to your heart. Once you find peace with whatever happened, I'm sure you'll let us all know." she said, then scooted over to him. "Just know, that whatever happened, wasn't your fault. There are some situations that you can't help, and in those cases, blaming yourself helps nobody. Especially not you."

Jack's eyes were wide. As he stared into her lovely dark eyes, he felt as if the chains of Atlas were cracking and splintering, allowing some of the weight to be freed from his shoulders. Soon, without his consent, tears began to spill from his eyes. He quickly countered them and tried to wipe them away, but he couldn't stop them.

Setting aside the tea, she stood and pulled him to his feet, then wrapped her arms around him. He gladly embraced her tightly, letting them finally spill free until he couldn't anymore. And the entire time, she didn't say a word. She just held him, gently stroking his back as his grief ripped from him in frustrated sobs.

When he was finally finished, he felt exhausted. Pulling away from her gently, he smiled. "Thank you..." was all he could say.

"Hey Jack!" came Cliff's voice from the door. Both Jack and Elli looked up to see not just the new farmhand, but the others as well, all staring wide-eyed at the two of them, still embracing, while she wore nothing but a bathrobe.

"Cliff?" asked Jack oddly. But anything else said was drowned out by a loud growling as Karen ran into the room and slapped him.

OoOoO

"Oooooh! So she came to cheer you up!" said Karen, cheerful again after Elli explained her visit, and the reason for the bathrobe. The entire interaction had Karen feeling like a child, being scolded. Jack sat on his couch, still clearing his head as the surprise attack had landed him square on his head.

Elli, still wearing the bathrobe, held an icepack on his sore cranium as she glared at Karen. "Not very lady like Karen, attacking on sight." she said, snorting in disapproval.

Karen just fidgeted. "Sorry...it was a protective reaction." she said, feeling ashamed of herself.

"You mean jealous reaction." said Popuri as she huffed.

"Hey, finally I'm not the only one in pain." said Cliff with a smile. But his smile vanished as Ann headlocked him.

"That can change scrub!" she said as she started to give him a noogie.

"Everyone quiet!" shouted Jack. Everyone in the room went as quiet as the dead at the call. Ann even let go of Cliff and stood straight. "My head is killing me." he said, holding his sore cranium. "So, that's twice now I've been assaulted on my own property. Is there any better a reason for this one?" he asked painfully. Popuri, as usual, looked oblivious to the statement.

"We just came by because, we wanted to hear your side of things." said Mary as she stepped forward. "Our last parting wasn't exactly...enlightening. And we know how gossip spreads in this town. So we wanted to clear everything up before...well...you know." she said, looking at her feet awkwardly.

Jack looked at her a moment, then sighed. "Alright." he said as he looked at the rest of them. "To be clear, my past is off limits to everyone. So let's get that clear right off the bat. Any questions are to be directed solely towards this one incident." he said firmly, making sure he eyed everyone down to let them know how serious he was.

Mary, Ann, and Cliff all looked downtrodden, but nodded like the rest. "Are you in trouble with the law?" asked Mary curiously.

Jack shook his head. "No." he said, not illuminating further. Regardless, Mary stared at him.

This time, Ann stepped up. "Do you regret it?"

He sighed and rubbed his head. "Every day of my life."

Gray stepped forward this time. "Was it accidental?"

Jack just looked up. He knew he was going to have to leak something if he wanted to get through to them. "If I hadn't done it, a lot more people would have died."

A dawning look appeared on everyone's faces. "So...you did it to save others?" asked Karen, relief flooding her. He just nodded with an annoyed expression.

"As I said, if I hadn't, a lot of people would have died, including myself." he said, accepting another glass of tea from Elli. Mary, standing in front of Jack, noticed the pain on his face when he mentioned the event. She smiled to herself and nodded to the others, who let out a bated breath.

"Well...glad we've cleared the air of that nonsense." said Popuri, who was smiling victoriously at Karen. The brunette just glared at her.

With the air finally clean between everyone, they all parted ways. Karen left last, aside from Elli, who the shopkeeper gave a threatening look before heading out. With the nurse's clothes now dry, she took them back and changed again. And when she emerged from the room, she greeted Jack with a smile. He met her with one of his own as he saw her to the door. She popped the umbrella open again and stepped outside.

"Thank you...again." he said, now smiling more than he had in a long time.

She just turned back to him and gave him another gorgeous smile. "Anytime Jack." she said, then headed off again into the rain.


	8. The Festival Begins

OoO( 8 )OoO

It had been a week before the crops decided to start showing their presence on Jack's farm. The turnips had began to swell underneath the ground, and the cucumbers began to lengthen down from the vine. Very soon, it would be time for harvesting.

For now, it was time for Ann. Since the group understanding a week prior, it seemed that the 'younger crowd' of Mineral Town had grown even closer. Ann now demanded that Jack's Friday evening belonged to their movie nights. Which is why she was currently at his house, wearing her usual t-shirt and pair of loose shorts, using him as a pillow as they watched a new movie.

The movie itself had the name "Fist of Legend", and wasn't dubbed. So the pair was currently watching with subtitles only. But, despite the closeness of the two friends, she had answered all his questions with a bit of a frosty tone. He was surprised at first, but kept silent, figuring that it had something to do with keeping away from her for four days, or maybe something to do with Elli and the bathrobe. Either way, he tried to be as hospitable as possible.

But when he offered her food to eat while they watched, she pouted and took the plate. He finally just sat down in front of the television and looked at her. "Alright, what is it?"

She put her nose up and began eating. "Nothing." she said, pretending not to notice him.

"Tell me or I'm taking my food back and tossing you out." he said, cracking his knuckles. "And you know I can do it too."

She glared at him, but finally caved. "You never told me you could fight. We've literally been watching movies together where the entire plot is to beat the opponent's face in as flashy as possible, and you never even told me you could fight." she said, huffing.

He rubbed his head. "I'm sorry. I came here to keep from having to fight. So admitting I knew how to didn't seem like a good idea at the time." he said, looking away.

She nodded. "Alright. But now that I know you're teaching Cliff, I want you to teach me too." she said firmly. He looked up at her exasperated. Then, she donned her special technique again, opening her eyes wide and curving her eyebrows, and letting out a pitiful, "Pleeeeeeease?"

He flinched, trying not to stare into her eyes. "I don't think you know what you're asking for." he said, covering her eyes with his hand. But I'll tell you what, come by tomorrow with Cliff, and I'll show you the training. Afterward, you can tell me if you still want to learn."

She smiled brightly. "Deal!" she said, then crawled up to him and eyed him. "So, are you gonna show me?" she asked, almost seductively.

He eyed her suspiciously. "We haven't even been on a date yet." he said, chuckling as she smacked him in the back of his head.

"You know what I mean." she said forcefully.

He just sighed, then stood to his feet. "Fine. But only this once." he growled in annoyance. She immediately sat cross-legged and looked up to him, smiling brightly. Once he had moved the couch out of the way, he stood stock still, as if frozen in time, with his eyes closed.

After a few moments, his hands shot forward, balled into fists. She watched, wide eyed as he moved back and forth, his feet stomping and his hands shifting quickly with powerful, but smooth attacks. He spun around on one foot, his knee now high in the air, before spinning like a twister and landing back on his feet again. When he stood this time, his stance and tempo changed completely. Now, his hands were open and flat, and his movements smooth and graceful. One leg moved in a semicircle around him, the ball of his foot and his big toe barely touching the ground. Finally, he moved forward, his arms moving like spears through the air and striking out at an invisible foe. Each thrust was like a living snake, striking out at a helpless prey.

After a few more minutes of the serpent-like style, he shifted to another form. For this one, his hands were opened like the claws of a tiger. His movements were now wild and fast, his hands swiping at the air as he spun like a whirlwind, then pounding forward like a pair of battering rams. Each thrust forward felt like it was moving the air around her. She could even swear that she heard a low rumbling from him, as if he were an actual tiger in the jungle, roaring out to frighten off enemies. Then, he changed one last time. This time was almost comical, as he looked as if he were about to fall over with each step. She looked up at his face, and even his expression had a goofy smile on it. He rolled forward, immediately coming back up to his full height on one foot. His hands were curled inwards, towards himself as if he were holding a small shot glass in each hand. The next few moments were a storm of balancing, sliding, and looking like he should have fallen on his head, but each time, catching himself with almost insane reflexes, despite looking like a mad drunk.

When he finished, he walked over and sat back down next to her and eyed her curiously. "Satisfied?" He went unanswered however, as the girl who to that point had been staring at him dumbly, hurled herself forward and locked her lips to his in a deep, passionate kiss.

OoOoO

Surprisingly, the weather in Mineral Town never seemed to change. Aside from a rainy day here or there, it was always a fresh, spring morning when he stepped outside. He didn't really know why, but he'd always loved the morning, just before sunrise. He'd heard many times about the phenomenon of people hating mornings, and had never really understood it. It was calm, it was quiet, it was dark, it was peaceful. He grabbed his watering can and headed over to the field where his veggies were growing larger by the day. Some were even ready to pick, according to the mayor, who went by Thomas.

He lifted the can, tilting it, and giving a generous shower to the plants as he walked down the row of stalks slowly. As he finished up, he looked up and saw his farmhand walking onto the farm. He looked crestfallen as always as he approached. Jack just smiled at him.

"What's the matter Cliff? Not excited?" he asked, waaay too cheerfully for the vagabond.

Cliff just snorted. "Yeah, I can't wait to get mangled again." he mumbled as he walked towards the field. But Jack walked forward and stopped him.

"Today, we're skipping work. Going straight to training. And you'll be having a new partner around likely." he said, walking towards the house.

"Someone else actually volunteered for this?" asked Cliff as he trudged away from the field and towards the house. When Jack opened the door, Ann was lounging on the couch. Cliff eyed her curiously. "You don't mean..." he asked incredulously.

"Yep! I'm your new sparring partner." said Ann with a large smile. Cliff just sighed in frustration.

"Is this really happening to me?" asked the farmhand as he sighed to himself.

"She's learning what it's going to be like today. Tomorrow, she starts where you started. Assuming she still wants to." said Jack as he stretched himself out. Cliff, already knowing the routine, did the same. Ann just watched as she sat on the back of the couch. When they finished their calisthenics, the two began to circle each other, their hands up and ready to grab as if they were in a sumo match.

Cliff grabbed Jack's wrist and went to twist sharply, but the farmer easily spun with the movement and whirled around the young man. Immediately, Jack's hand flew up and his fingers targeted the soft spots directly under Cliff's chin. The farmhand, who didn't have nearly the same amount of muscle as Jack had, wasn't able to pull out of it, and gave a sharp wince of pain as his opponent dug into his pressure points. No matter how hard he struggled, he wasn't able to break the grip.

Ann watched in silence as Jack dominated the young man. Cliff writhed in Jack's grip as he struggled to get free of the attack, but both she and the young man knew that was fruitless. For a brief moment, her heart went out to him.

"Relax!" said Jack forcefully. Cliff, who was still in pain, tried to relax himself, the sharp stinging still making him grimace. Jack finally let go, then twisted his own wrist around and jabbed now at the nerve above his clavicle. He immediately tensed up again as a fresh wave of pain flooded through him.

Cliff had finally had enough. "That's it! Let me go!" he shouted angrily. Jack, surprised by the ferocity of the request, did so. "I'm sick of this shit!" he said, heading for the door.

"What's wrong Cliff?" asked Jack, confused about the attitude.

The farmhand spun around and glared at him. "For two weeks now, you've done nothing but humiliate me. You've thrown me down, tossed me aside, pushed me against the wall, and continuously tortured me with those ridiculous pressure holds. But I put up with it Jack! Why? Because I wanted to learn! But I'm not going to be humiliated for the entertainment of your girlfriend!" he said forcefully.

Jack glared at Cliff darkly and rushed forward. "Defend yourself." he said forcefully as he punched the farmhand in the jaw. Cliff spun around, but held his ground. He threw a punch at Jack that was extremely slow. Jack easily dodged, and unleashed a punch combination on his stomach that sent him skidding backwards. Cliff held his stomach, feeling a wave of nausea flood him, making him want to vomit.

Ann's eyes were wide. "I...I didn't even see you hit him!" she said in awe.

Jack walked up to Cliff and patted his back gently. "How do you feel?"

Cliff fought the feeling down and stood straight again. "I'm fine." he said, looking away. "Was there a purpose for that? Or are you just showing off again?" he asked bitterly.

Jack just smiled. "Back in the inn, you said you got your ass beat by a teenager when you were younger. Do you think you'd fare well against him now?" he asked as he helped the young man up. Cliff just shook his head. "Follow me." he said, opening the door to his house and walking outside. Cliff and Ann looked at each other oddly, then followed him outside. Jack continued until he was at the edge of his field, where a crooked post was sticking out of the ground. When the other two arrived, he hit the post with the same attack he had just used on his farmhand.

Both of the visitors stared wide eyed as the post snapped immediately at each impact until it was in seven different pieces. "What the actual hell?" asked Ann in shock.

Cliff just stared at the pieces dumbly. Jack turned to him, wearing the same confident smile. "The last time I used that on someone, they were in the hospital for three days. They required surgery for internal bleeding." he said as he patted Cliff on the shoulder. "Before you can learn to attack, you must learn to defend yourself. What kind of techniques you learn will be completely useless if you are knocked out from a single blow."

The farmhand looked up at Jack in awe. "So...you haven't just been torturing me?"

The farmer shook his head. "I've been getting you used to the worst pain you've ever experienced before. At least, without lighting you on fire." he said shrugging. "You've endured it so much that taking a hit from some thug on the street is going to feel like getting hit with a pillow."

"Oh..." said Cliff, feeling slightly dumb now.

Jack turned to Ann with a smile. "Still wanna learn?" he asked. To his surprise, the girl nodded eagerly.

"Damn right I do!" she shouted, hopping excitedly next to Cliff.

OoOoO

Jack gave Cliff the next day off to prepare for the Goddess Festival. He himself had to pull out one of his most formal outfits, which was simply a grey button down shirt and a pair of black slacks. He had no dress shoes, so his boots were the only option available. After getting dressed and heading out into the bright light of the sun, he made his way towards Rose Square.

When he arrived, he was slightly stunned. Despite the low residency rate of the town, the plaza was almost packed to the brim with visitors, as well as all the citizens of the town. His first greeting was from Lillia and Popuri, who forced Rick over to greet him. The sandy-haired young man just glared at Jack, who glared right back. They shook hands, and Jack went about his way after remarking how beautiful Lillia and Popuri looked in their dresses. The pink haired woman thanked him, her face flushing lightly. Popuri just stayed quiet, blushing madly and looking at the ground.

The next person he ran into in the excited park was Elli, who was pushing a much older woman in a wheelchair with a young boy following her around. He was short, probably not older than ten, and had a bowl of black hair overturned on his head. He had never actually seen someone's hair cut in this fashion, the sight making him stop and stare.

"Hey Jack!" Elli greeted as she pushed the woman towards him. He waved at her and looked down at the boy, who was hiding behind her blue dress as they got closer.

"You look nice." said Jack smiling. "Isn't that the same dress Popuri is wearing?" he asked curiously.

Elli just chuckled. "It's for the Dance of the Harvest Goddess. The younger girls of the village all have to dance together in the same dress later. Karen, Mary, and Ann are all wearing the same one." she said with a knowing smile. Seeing the amused look on his face, she glared at him playfully. "You be nice to Ann." she said in a mock threatening tone.

"Yes ma'am." he said, acting like he was pouting. But his attention turned to the other two. "So, who is this lovely young lady?"

"Stop your flattery you old silver tongue." she said in a very dignified manner. Despite the request, she still smiled happily at the compliment.

Elli actually giggled at the woman, not having seen her react in such an animated manner in a while. "This is my grandmother Ellen. And this here, is my little brother Stu." she finished, pushing the young lad forward. The bowl-cut kid looked at the ground nervously. "Say hello to Jack, Stu."

"Umm...h-hi." he said, still nervous. But Jack crouched down with a smile.

"What do you like to do for fun Stu?" he asked curiously. The boy looked up at him in surprise.

"U-Ummm...bugs are cool. I like to collect them." he said quietly.

"Bugs are awesome!" said Jack excitedly.

Stu suddenly broke out of his shell and raised his hands. "Right!?" he said, then turned around and smiled confidently at Elli. "See? Told you!" he said, sticking his tongue out.

"But so is listening to your older sister. Because if you don't, then the bugs won't wanna be friends with you anymore." said Jack in a very serious tone. Stu looked at him, his expression crestfallen before nodding solemnly.

"Alright." he grumbled in disappointment.

When he stood and looked at Elli, the smile she wore practically made her glow. "Thanks Jack."

He nodded. "Maybe you and him can come by the farm later. I have a dog you know." said Jack as he looked down at Stu again.

The boy looked wide eyed at Jack, then turned to Elli and put his hands together pleadingly. "Please sis? Can we go?"

She closed her eyes, looking away in mock sternness as she said, "I don't know...you haven't been very nice to me lately." But when she looked back, Jack was down on his knees next to Stu, giving her the same pleading look.

Both of them, in unison, let out a long, "Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease?" She covered her mouth, trying to hold back the torrent of laughter that was about to flood from her face. But she didn't do a very good job. She curled over, laughing at the two beggars in front of her.

"Alright alright you two. We can go!" she said, holding her ribs as a painful stitch dug at her side from the laughter. When Jack stayed in the begging position, she glared at him. "Stop it! I have to dance later and I don't need anymore pains in my sides." she said as she poked his nose.

He just stood and nodded. "Alright. I'll see you three around." he said charmingly as he walked off. As Ellen, Elli, and Stu left, Karen finally found him as she elbowed her way through the crowd.

"Jack!" she shouted, her hand waving in the air. He turned and saw her, then reached out quickly as she dove into his arms and hugged him tightly. "I'm so glad to see you made it!"

"I wish everyone felt the same." he said with a chuckle as he swung the brunette girl around for a moment before setting her on her feet again. Karen, a fairly innocent girl, had never had someone do that before. It was like in some fairy tale when the prince...

"Wait...who doesn't?" she asked, eyeing him as her dreamy thoughts were dashed by his words.

"I shouldn't really say anything." he said crossing his arms with a smile. "Besides, I handled it." She eyed him up and down with a seductive smile.

"I bet you did." she said, looping her arm into his as if he were escorting her. Her hand immediately began to feel up the musculature of his arm. "Come on, it's time to finally introduce you to my mother." she said as she led him towards one of food tables. When he saw the woman standing there holding a punch glass, he was mildly surprised. As opposed to Karen's father, her mother was tall. Taller than himself in fact. She currently had her hair tied up into a bun, and wore a sundress that matched her equally golden hair.

"Mom! This is Jack!" she said excitedly as she introduced the two.

Karen's mother, known simply as Sasha, looked at Jack with a suspicious eye. "Good to meet you Jack. You are the owner of the farm now, is that right?" she asked curiously.

He nodded. "I am. I intend to be here for a long time, a chance Mr. Alexander gave me when he passed the farm to me." he said, then held out his hand in greeting. Still suspicious, she placed her hand in his. "I must say, it is a pleasure to finally meet you Sasha. it's now clear to me where Karen got her beauty from." he said, pressing his forehead to the back of her hand.

"Karen dear." said the older woman, whose eyes were sparkling brightly, a large smile gracing her features.

"Yes mom?" she asked, her own face flushed at having been called beautiful, even indirectly.

"Take this charmer away from me before I steal him for myself." she ordered happily. Karen, with a stunned look on her face, did as she was told. "Bye Jack! Enjoy the festival!" she said, still smiling brightly.

When they were out of earshot, Karen spun towards him and looked at him incredulously. "How the hell did you do that!?"

"Do what?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow at her curiously.

"My mother doesn't like any of my friends at first! Especially a guy I liked enough to..." she said, then slapped a hand over her mouth. Looking up slowly, she knew she'd been busted.

"Is that so?" asked Jack, a large smile on his face. "Well Karen, I do declare!" he said with a mocking 'southern belle' accent. "If ya wanted in mah britches, ya coulda just asked!"

She just slugged him in the arm. "Shut up you. Isn't it a rule that a guy isn't supposed to make fun of a girl when she spills her heart?" she asked, crossing her arms.

"There are rules?" he asked, scratching his head. "Look, I've never even dated a girl before. I wouldn't really know about any of that."

Her eyes opened wide. "You've never dated, you've never had sex..." she asked, looking him up and down as she put her hands on her hips. "Jack, where have you been hiding from the women of the world?" she asked in amusement. He just shrugged.

"In my job I guess." he said, his tone souring.

"Which was?" she asked curiously. But she immediately wilted as he glared at her. "Oh...right. Nevermind." she said, then looked at the ground awkwardly.

"Karen! Come over here! I still have to fix your hair!" shouted the girl's mother. The shopkeeper just smiled to her mom, then turned to Jack.

"See you after the dance." she said, then dashed away.

He just sighed to himself. "These girls are going to kill me."

"That wouldn't be pleasant." said a quiet voice behind him. He looked over to see Mary smiling up at him. "Hello Jack."

Even with her dress on, she was still timid little Mary with her arms behind her back and her small smile. But instead of her normal studious look, with the schoolgirl outfit and glasses, she looked radiant. She wasn't wearing her glasses, leaving her flint-grey eyes open for him to see clearly. On her head, like the other girls, she wore a flower tiara around her head that consisted of many different colored flora. Her hair had been woven with green vines, making it look as if she were part tree, and with the rest of the ensemble, made her look like someone who would be called the Harvest Goddess.

He just looked at her stunned. "Oh...hi Mary." he said, almost unsure of what to say.

She noticed him staring and waved her hand in front of his face. "Helloooo?"

He shook his head and smiled awkwardly. "Sorry, I was just...thinking about something." he said awkwardly. "You look...great!"

She looked shocked for a moment, then blushed madly. "Th-Thanks Jack." she said, trying to cover her cheeks in embarrassment. But, she quickly brushed her emotions aside. "I was wondering if you could answer something for me." He just nodded, eyeing her suspiciously. He knew how inquisitive she was, and how smart she was. "U-Um...when Mr. Alexander last came into town, he had borrowed a book from the library that I may need for a reference in the future. If you happen to find it, would you mind returning it?"

Relieved at the simple question, he nodded. "Of course. As a matter of fact, why not swing by the house later after the festival? We can look for it together?" he offered with a smile. She thought about it for a moment, then nodded.

"Alright." she said smiling. "I hope you and Karen enjoy the festival!" she said as she headed off towards the front of the festival. He watched her go with a grin, when another voice penetrated his thoughts and grabbed his attention.

Turning, he spotted a certain redhead standing at a booth at the edge of the square. Strolling over, he merely grinned. Ann was standing in front of the booth that belonged to a woman in long red robes with silver hair. She sat in front of a crystal ball, and next to her was a large man that looked to be some kind of bouncer. When he finally reached the barmaid, he heard the conversation.

"Are you kidding me? That's it Nora? You'll have a good year this year?" she asked, her arms akimbo as she looked expectantly at the fortune teller. "Cummon, I need juicy details! Who will I be with? Will we be together long? When will I die?"

"I apologize, but my powers are currently limited do to the large number of people in the area. If you want a more accurate reading, then please visit me at the inn tonight." said the woman in a silky voice.

Ann growled and turned around to storm off when she saw Jack right in front of her. She stopped, both wanting to smile, and wanting to grimace in horror. "Oh no." she said, seeing the smirk on his face.

"What's wrong Ann?" he asked playfully. She just reached up and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, dragging him away from the table.

"Oh shut up smartass." she ordered, pulling him away from others. When they were away from the rest of the crowd, she stopped and turned back to him. Quickly, she began to fidget with her dress, not saying anymore.

He just smiled with a sigh. "You look beautiful." She looked up sharply, then looked aside with a small smile. She, like the others wore the same blue dress, and had the same flower tiara on her head. But instead of her normal braid, her hair had been let loose in a ponytail with vines flowing through it, similar to Mary's.

"Thanks Jack." she said simply. Looking up, she locked her clear blue eyes onto him, ready to ask what she'd been wanting to ask for a while. But another voice cut her off.

"All the dancers need to gather at the front of the square immediately!" shouted Mayor Thomas, a squat man who wore a scarlet suit and tophat. Jack wasn't sure what the mayor of a town this small did, but quickly forgot the question as Ann grabbed his hand smiling, and pulled him to the front of the crowd.

She rushed up onto the small stage that had been set up and took up her position. He stood there as the five girls all stood in their place, each holding their hands up in a prayer-like pose with their eyes closed. It was another few moments before a slow, cheerful, melodic beat started to play over what seemed to be the mayor's phonograph. The girls all opened their eyes, and slowly started to move about in a circular motion on the stage.

As if in complete sync with each other, the five girls spun as they continued to circle, their arms now out in a T shape to their body. Suddenly, ribbons of different colors, representing plant life growing no doubt, uncoiled from their arms and began to move around them in spirals as if they had a life of their own.

Jack just watched in awe as each of them, a smile on their face, moving gracefully, passed by him. Popuri, loving and innocent. Mary, fiercely smart and accepting. Karen, adventurous and charming. Ann, fiery and playful. And Elli, kind-hearted and caring. They all danced before him in their ritual of the Harvest Goddess. Each one having different things about them that he loved now, and would love for the rest of his life.


	9. The Goddess Festival

OoO( 9 )OoO

The dancing had gone on for another ten minutes almost, before the girls finally finished in a bow that was as elegant as it was agile. Jack could do nothing but stare at the girls on the stage. Each of them had performed flawlessly, never missing a beat of the dance, or stumbling for even a second. They had probably done this many times already, he figured.

When the girls had finished, and the music stopped, they all filed off stage to a small shack set up by Gotz. Jack turned and smiled as the crowd clapped and people milled about, going to the different tables for food, drinks, and other goods.

"You are a face I haven't seen before. You are new to town I hear." came a voice from behind him. Jack looked at the woman, recognizing her voice. It was the fortune teller that Ann was badgering earlier about an unsatisfying fortune. Now that he saw her up close, he had to admire her looks. Despite her silver hair, she still looked relatively young. She wore long red robes that ended at her ankles, and a jeweled necklace with black sparkling stones set in it.

He simply held out his hand, eyeing her curiously, as he'd never seen, nor heard of her before either. "Jack."

Her red painted lips curved upwards in a playful grin. "Mysterious Jack." she said, shaking his hand gently. To his surprise, after she shook his hand, she then turned his palm up and examined it curiously. He was about to protest, but just sighed and let her do her thing. If she wasn't charging, then there was no point in bothering.

But, after a few seconds, she donned a look of surprise that almost startled him. "Is something the matter?" he asked, looking her up and down to see what the issue was. But she just released his hand and bowed.

"I do apologize, but I forgot that I have something that needs doing!" she said, bowing her head in apology and fleeing off towards the inn.

"What was that about?" asked Karen from behind him. He turned to her and his eyes widened. Gone was her Goddess Dress, and in its place was a sleek black dress that cut off around her knees, and had frilling around the entire skirt. The top of the dress covered her well formed top enough to leave him wanting more, but left her back bare. He just stared at her in silence, making her smile. "Oh Jack, did I make you speechless?" she asked playfully.

He shook the lingering thoughts of her body out of his head and cleared his throat. "No...I uh...was just thinking about something...else."

"Riiiiight." she said as she grabbed his arm again, leading him towards her parents.

"Who was that by the way?" he asked her as he allowed himself to be guided by the shopkeeper.

"That's Nora. She comes by the village every now and then with her husband, Radcliff. Mostly around festivals and such. She's actually eerily accurate with her readings too." she said, then smiled. "Mom!" she shouted, waving in the air at the tall blonde woman who was now standing next to the tiny Jeff.

Sasha looked over and noticed them both, then waved happily. "Hey you two. Are you having fun Jack?" she asked curiously.

The farmer just nodded. "Yeah, I've only ever seen one festival in my life. I hear they have a lot around here, is that right?" he asked as he looked around at all the people gathered in the square. There were games, food, drinks, and even a costume or two.

Karen's mother nodded. "We don't have a lot going on around here. So to shake things up, we usually have several festivals or holidays each season. It helps break up the monotony a bit, and at the same time brings in revenue with all the visitors that wish to see our quaint lovely island."

"I don't always have to dress as formally as this, do I?" he asked, looking up at her nervously.

"Just for the dancing ones. A lot of festivals are done either at home, or in other locations. So whether you dress up for them is pretty much up to you." she said, taking a sip from her punch.

Jack sighed in relief. "Good, these are the only formal clothes I've got."

Sasha chuckled, then took Karen by the arm gently. "Come dear, we must get the rest of those vines from your hair before the final dance." she said as she strolled away with the girl.

"Be ready to dance when I get back!" said Karen as she walked away. Jack stood there for a moment, waving, until finally the words sunk in.

"I have to dance?" he asked, his expression now a mask of panic.

"It's really not that bad." said a meek voice next to him. He looked over and noticed Mary standing with a woman much taller than her, which, considering Mary's size, wasn't that hard. The woman had the same dark hair as the librarian, but was wavy and cut short at her jaw. Though she had the same sharp, intelligent eyes.

"Says you, I haven't danced a day in my life." he said, eyeing the woman curiously.

"Mary, introduce me to your friend." said the woman, nudging the girl with a smile.

"My name is Jack." said the farmer, taking the initiative as he stepped forward. "You must be Mary's sister." he said, smiling brightly.

The woman's face melted into a sparkling grin. "Oh stop. You're too kind." she said, not noticing the librarian snickering next to her. "I'm Anna, Mary's mother, actually." she said, taking his hand and shaking it enthusiastically.

"I see, it's good to meet you Anna." he said with his own friendly smile.

"Be sure to let us know if you need anything. Basil, my husband, is a rather incredible botanist. So do't forget to let us know if we can be of assistance." she said brightly.

"Mom?" asked Mary, who had an amused smile on her face.

"Yes dear?" asked the older woman.

"You haven't blinked in a full minute." said the librarian, who was holding back her laughing as her mother finally tore her gaze away from the farmer.

"I'm sorry dear, the wine must be getting to me. I'm gonna go have a seat." she said, then wandered off into the crowd.

"You certainly have a way with older women." said the young woman, smiling up at Jack.

He just scratched his head. "I don't….I mean, I guess. I don't exactly get it though. I'm just being polite." he said as he grabbed a cup of juice from the table next to him.

Mary patted him on the back gently. "There's being polite, then knowing exactly what to say to woo women. For someone who's never been on a date before, you sure know how to crack a woman's heart wide open." she said in an amused tone as she grabbed a small kebob.

He said nothing as they both sat down on the bench. Now that he actually looked at her, he noticed that she had changed her dress as well. Now, she just had a simple blue tea dress on. And despite its simplicity, it looked great on her.

"Jack, I wanted you to know something." she said, her tone more serious now. He looked over at her curiously, but she was just looking off into the crowd. "Since the day you revealed your tattoo, I've been researching it, and you heavily." she said, turning to look at him.

He stiffened immediately, his hand crushing the half empty cup, and causing the rest of the liquid to spill over his hand, coloring it red. "What?" he asked, his voice strained.

"I've already discovered what the symbol on your back refers to. And it's only a matter of time before I end up connecting it to your past."

"Why are you doing this?" he asked, his voice filled with desperation as if he were begging her to stop.

"Because Jack, you told us that you weren't in trouble with the law. That means that the reason you want to hide it is because you're ashamed of it." she said, then looked down at the ground. "I can assure you that hiding it from your friends will only end in despair."

"That's my choice to make." he said angrily.

Then she looked up at him and gave him the most piercing look he thought he'd ever see on the timid librarian. "You intend to stay here for a long time. Right?" Still awestruck at the glare she had given him, he just nodded dumbly. "You probably intend to get married here, have kids here as well. Be here for the rest of your life. Now tell me Jack, what's going to happen if one day you're drunk and accidentally spill whatever it is you're ashamed about? Do you think everyone will just 'understand'?" she asked, giving air quotes. "Gossip spreads like wildfire Jack, especially here. And whatever it is that you feel so ashamed of doing, is going to come out eventually. It's just a matter of time. And in cases like this, the longer you wait, the more damage will be done." she said matter-of-factly.

He just held his head in his hand. "So, what then? You'll learn who I am and tell everyone?" he asked icily.

"No." she said, causing him to look up. "I'm learning who you are for multiple reasons. The first and foremost because I see what this is doing to you, and I want to help." She nervously played with the hem of her tea dress as she continued. "The second is that I like you Jack, and I don't want whatever you're hiding to blindside me." she said as she stood up. "I want to know you, all of you. Not just what you want to show me. When I find out the rest, if you don't want them to know, I won't say anything. That's your business to tell them, not mine."

Though still slightly irritated at her persistence, he nodded. "Thank you." he said, tossing his now obliterated cup into the nearby trash can. "So, anytime you find something new, are you going to tell me? Or are you going to throw me a 'Surprise! I know everything!' party once you have the whole picture?" She giggled at him.

"To be completely honest, Mr. Alexander does have a library book checked out. But the real reason I wanted to come by was to talk to you about this. If it's alright, I'd like to come by your place more often." she said, flushing slightly at the request.

He sat, thinking about it for a moment. After everything she just told him, he could very well tell her to go and ram her missing book up her hind end. But he knew that in some small way, she was right. And it was adorable how much she cared. "Alright, you can come by. But, you're not getting any clues from me Miss Holmes. Anything you find, you're digging up on your own." he said, making her giggle.

"As you wish." she said, standing up. "It's about time for the dance. You'll be starting off with Karen since she was your date." she said as she straightened her dress.

"Starting?" he asked, standing up as well.

She nodded to him. "You start off with one partner, then switch, and continuously switch throughout the dance. It's meant to illustrate the interconnectedness of nature. You better get ready, I see her waiting over there." said the librarian as she pointed to a black-dressed Karen, who's hair was now silky smooth once more.

"Amazing, a dance that says plants are polygamous." he said in amusement as he walked over to the young woman. Another ten minutes went by and Jack was standing with one arm around a smiling Karen's waist, with his other clasping hers. The music started, and slowly they began to move together like a ship gently rocking in the ocean. The tempo picked up slightly, and they were gently spinning together in the center of the crowd with her looking up into his eyes, and him smiling down at her. Soon, the instrumentation changed from the original violins to deep cellos. With a resigned sigh, Karen released him and switched over to Gray.

Ann came spinning into his arms from her father's, and smiled up at him brightly. "Hiya."

"Hello." he said with an amused smirk. They began to dance together as the chorus of cellos picked up. As they danced, she stumbled slightly. "Have you been drinking?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow at her as he lifted her slightly, allowing her to more easily drift on her feet.

"Maybe a bit. It's a party after all." said the redhead as she glared at him. "What's it to ya cowboy?" she asked, then hiccuped slightly. He just chuckled and they continued dancing around and around. When the cello switched to harp, she pouted. "Leaving already?"

"How could I deny someone else your magical presence?" he asked dramatically.

"Oh stop you fiend." she said, pushing his face away with the flat of her hand. He pulled on her arm, causing her to spin and land into the arms of Cliff. She looked up at him dizzily and smiled. "Oh, hey Scooter. Good of you to bring your friends." she said as he helped her upright.

The farmhand looked from her over to Jack, who signaled him with a drinking motion. Cliff just chuckled and took Ann up in the dancing position.

Meanwhile, Popuri flew into Jack's arms and immediately took up her stance with a sparkling smile. "Hi Jack!" she said excitedly.

"Having fun Pinkie?" he asked, his mood instantly lifted by her infectious attitude. She nodded happily, her hair now braided into multiple pink braids down her back, while her bangs were actually pulled forward to frame her face.

"I love festivals, and I love dancing too!" she said as they began to spin together to the harp chords.

"You love dancing huh?" he asked curiously.

She nodded again, looking up at him with her cherry colored eyes. "When I was a kid, my daddy took me to a ballet. They were so beautiful, and so…" she said, trying to think of the word.

"Agile?" he asked, smiling slightly at the beautiful girl.

"That's it!" she said smiling. "They were very flexible and graceful, it was amazing. Ever since that day, I've wanted to be a dancer." she said as she winked at him. As they danced to the peaceful tone, he noticed that she was considerably more sure of her footing than the other two he had danced with so far.

Time flew by as the two whirled around the square, and before long, it was time to switch again. This time, Sasha turned to him, then smiled as she took up her place as his partner. As they began dancing again, he noticed a bit of her original scrutinizing eye return. "So Jack, what are your intentions?" she interrogated as their feet started to move together.

His expression froze for a moment. "Uhhh...I'm not sure what you mean…" he said nervously.

"You come here, take over the farm, become a part of the community. Are you intending to stay? Or is this just a temporary visit?" she questioned, smiling gently. Her question instantly made him loosen up.

"I'm planning on staying for as long as the village will have me. I have no intention of returning to the rest of the world." he said, nodding with assurance.

"I see." she said, then looked as if she were deep in thought. Looking up again, she curled one eyebrow up. "And Karen?" Again, Jack cringed. "What are your intentions with my daughter?" she asked, smirking slightly.

"It's….too early to say." he said as politely as he could. "I haven't known anyone here long enough to be thinking about relationships yet." Then he noticed her playful gaze. "And no, me and Ann didn't do anything yet. We fell asleep watching movies." he said with a growl.

Sasha just chuckled. "Alright Jack, no need to get defensive." she said as the song wound down once more. "Behave yourself now." said the shopkeeper's wife as she switched over to Tim. Mary stepped up to him, and they smiled at each other briefly before dancing together. The two, having already talked earlier, had no words for each other and just danced the song away peacefully. In the final stretch of the song, Mary went to her father, and Ellie, who had been dancing with Duke, spun out of control towards him.

Jack immediately reached out and caught her in the dip pose, with her arms wrapped around his neck. She looked up and flushed brightly as he sat her back on her feet. "I….I'm sorry Jack…" she said, covering her face in embarrassment. The farmer just smiled at her.

"No need to be sorry, it wasn't your fault." he said, glaring over at the drunken man who had accidentally flung her away in a stupor. Currently, his wife, another dark-haired woman known as Manna, was pulling on his sleeve and trying to get him to leave. Turning back to the nurse, he held out his hand as he admired her dress. She had an aqua blue mermaid style dress that billowed out around her knees. "Wow…" he said as he looked away, trying not to look like he was staring.

She just smiled at him. "Thank you." she said simply. They took up positions again, and danced the rest of the song away.

OoOoO

There he was again. Just a child on the side of Mother Hill, sitting with the mysterious girl that was his consistent play partner. They were worn out after a day of tag, animal riding, hide'n'seek, and playing fetch with Mr. Alexander's dog. The pair had worn themselves down and were now sitting and relaxing next to what the old man had called the Goddess Pond.

It was a gorgeous place, the pool sitting calmly in what looked like a very intricately laid stone bedding. Above, a small waterfall poured down into the cairn-like pit. Unlike most waterfalls, this one poured down the side of the cliff, from one stone to the other in its quest to reach the surface of the water, leaving behind a small splash instead of the normal thundering that usually marked a waterfall's presence.

Despite the peaceful noises, and his once best friend by his side, he still felt an ominous presence about the pond. Getting to his feet, he shuffled over to the glassy waters surface and peeked over the edge, looking into the depths of the cool clear water. For a few minutes, he had only seen his own reflection, leading him to sigh in relief. But once again the dark light appeared in the center of the pond. Slowly it spread out to cover the entirety of the water's surface, causing him to step back in fright. Then, he heard it.

"Please….help me!" said a familiar voice. He immediately ran to the edge of the pond again and stared down into what was now a dark gateway. The edges began to spiral towards the center, making the pond a maelstrom of darkness. In the center was her again. Her hair was green and wild, untameable by any human methods, or possibly any method at all. The long green hair was currently drifting wide, even gravity not affecting it wherever she was. Her gorgeous form was covered in leaves, flowers, and vines, making a beautiful, but functional dress of sorts. Her legs long, her hips curving, everything about her was the pinnacle of beauty.

But currently, she wasn't moving. Her eyes were closed as she lay at the bottom of the maelstrom of darkness. It looked as if she was in a deep, heavy sleep. Jack spied her curiously, unable to reach her as she was too far below. "Hello?" he asked.

"Please!" came the voice again. He stumbled back, falling onto his behind in surprise. "You must help me!"

"H-How?" asked Jack as he looked over the edge of the pond again. She was still deep in her slumber, but somehow she was talking to him in his mind.

"M-My power grows weaker. You must seek the little ones! They can guide you once you have tasted it…" she said, then she let out a gut wrenching moan. Her cries for help turned into sobs. "I'm…..fading….faster. Please….follow...white…" she strained, then the vortex collapsed chaotically, crashing over her form and covering her once more. Jack fell back once more, but this time a wicked laugh erupted from the pond.

As in his previous dream, his friend had vanished. He was left there, sitting next to the pond, cold and alone.

OoOoO

Jack sat up straight in his bed, cold sweat covering him and his eyes wide open. His blanket was across the room, draped off the dresser for some reason. He looked around rapidly, getting his bearings before swinging his feet off the bed and rubbing his head gently. "What the hell?" he asked himself as he tried to recall the dream that had just caused him such duress, but couldn't.

Looking up, he noticed something odd about the small stand next to his bed. On it was sitting a small basket, with a bottle full of blue spiraling liquid and a pair of muffins. Pulling the basket into his lap, he noticed a small note attached to the basket.

 **Drink slowly to ease the pain**

 **in your head. Eat something**

 **as well. It'll absorb some of**

 **the alcohol.**

He stared at the note curiously. It was unsigned, and had a very girlish, flowing handwriting to it. Looking over at the elixir in the basket, he smiled and grabbed the bottle. He stared into the depths of the water as whatever was floating inside it spiraled around in the bottle like a cyclone. His mind flashed with visions of a dark maelstrom and a woman at the bottom. He just shook his head, regretting it immediately as it started to throb. Popping the lid on the glass container, he drank from it.

It was sweet, but not so much sugary sweet. It tasted like a kind of fruit, but none that he could really name. And it was thicker than water, definitely some kind of juice, and not the store bought kind. Holding the liquid in his mouth, he could taste small pieces of whatever was used to make the drink floating inside it as well, each one full of juice itself. He gently chewed the pulpy fruit and swallowed it.

"That's….surprisingly good." he said, looking at the bottle oddly. He half expected it to taste like crap, as most healing remedies did. Reaching over, he took both of the muffins and almost devoured them whole. In less than ten minutes, he felt like a new man, and was stretching in the middle of his room, getting all the kinks out of his system.

It was then that he was startled by a knocking on his front door. Looking over at the clock, he saw that it read **13:17**. "Shit…" he said as he got up and walked into the living room, throwing a shirt on at the same time.

Opening the door, he cringed at the sunlight which was already shining from the sky. "Sorry Cliff, I ended up sleeping in…"

"Well, then it's a good thing I'm not Cliff." said the voice timidly. Jack looked down at the figure, seeing Mary standing there. She was back in her regular everyday clothing, this time being a black t-shirt with a blue skirt to match. Her hair was braided once more, and her glasses sat on the bridge of her delicate nose.

"Mary?" he asked curiously.

"The one and only. May I come in?" she asked politely. He stepped aside and allowed her inside. As she stepped into the home and looked around curiously. "How quaint." she remarked.

"That usually translates to 'Your house is tiny.'" he said jokingly as he walked over to his coffee maker. Suddenly, he stopped and looked at the tea kettle. "Do you prefer tea, or coffee?"

"Coffee is fine." she said, taking a seat at the two person table in his kitchen. He nodded, proceeding to make his visitor her drink. When he handed her the steaming mug, she smiled. "Thank you."

"So, to what do I owe the pleasure?" he asked, sitting down delicately and taking a sip, his head no longer pounding.

Taking a sip of her own steaming brew, she set the mug down with a smile. "Well, yesterday you told me to stop by your house to inquire after the book that Mr. Alexander had borrowed. As it turns out, you, Karen, Ann, Cliff, and Gray all ended up getting much too drunk at the after party. So my father helped you home, and the others stayed at the inn pretty much." she said, then turned and stared at the wall blankly. "He also mentioned you trying to fight him off with your blanket once he got you to your room. It was quite amusing."

He sighed, making her giggle at him. "Right right...sorry. I can usually handle my alcohol better than that." he said, rubbing his temple gently and taking another swig of the elixir. "So, did your father also leave me muffins and this?" he asked, showing her the bottle.

Mary just shook her head. "I don't believe so. My father doesn't know how to bake really, and that stuff is usually used by Elli and Tim to help with hangovers. Some people might have gotten some and dropped it off after checking on you." she said, scratching her chin. He just stared at the bottle, then turned back to her.

"So, what was the book called?" he asked curiously.

"It's a strange title known as "A Dark History"." she said, looking thoughtful. "It was very strange of him to ask for that kind of book. He usually only ever came to get cook books, or even a few curious fantasy novels."

"Why was it strange? What was it about?" he asked, also wondering why Alexander would check out such a grim sounding title.

"The Dark History is more of a reference novel rather than a story. It basically outlined the era of mankind around ritual sacrifices and sorcery. After he rented it, I started reading up on the occult in general, and even started writing a novel on it shortly after. But it never did enlighten me on why Mr. Alexander wanted the book." she said before taking another sip.

"That does seem like a strange read for him." he said, taking another swig of the pulpy mixture, then chewing it mindlessly. "Did he seem a bit strange to you at the time?"

She gave him another adorable smile. "Very intuitive question. Yes, he seemed a bit distraught about something. But he wouldn't tell anyone why. He just asked for the book and rushed home." Jack got to his feet and walked over to the bookshelf next to the television. He scanned it curiously, looking for the title.

"Hmmm….I don't see it here. He must have done something with it." he said, running his hand through his dark hair. Turning to the young woman, he shrugged. "We can check the bedroom, but I didn't see any books back there that weren't mine."

Mary nodded, then stood. "Why Jack, offering to take me to your room so soon?" she asked, her expression shocked.

His expression deadpanned. "Humor, Mary?"

She giggled. "Attempted humor."

"Keep working on it." he said, heading to the back room. She followed him and he started stacking his own books onto the nightstand in place of the basket. "These are all the books I brought here with me." he said, patting the stack. "Anything else, I didn't put there." he said as he started digging around in the dresser drawers.

Mary stood in place in the center of the room, her eyes scanning everything as if her glasses had built in radar. Her eyes first stopped on the clock. It now broadcasted 13:45. Turning from the clock, she noticed the duffle bag that lay in the corner. It was black, and had long shoulder straps that allowed the majority of the carrying weight to shift to the hips instead of the shoulders and back. Then his bed, which was neatly made, then her gaze locked on the picture that was secured to the mirror on the dresser.

Young girl, Asian descent, though with darker skin than usual. She wasn't starving, nor was she impoverished. Her clothes, while nothing fancy, were utility, good for working and good for keeping warm. The strangest thing about her was that she had bright green eyes in the picture, an oddity for anyone of Asian descent. Even with Mary's mother being only half Asian, and her father mostly German and Irish, she herself had mostly dominant genes from her mom, from the dark hair and eyes, to even her height measuring at an even five feet.

"I think I found it!" said Jack as he lie under the bed. Mary snapped out of her mental flexing and turned to him. He climbed out from under the bed, then lifted the mattress up, showing in between the cushioned mat and the slats that held it up, was a fairly small book with no words on the cover or spine. Only when Mary picked it up and opened the cover did she read the title 'The Dark History'. Nodding, she tucked it under her arm. "Well, that wasn't too hard. But why would he hide it there?" he asked as he let the mattress fall back into place.

"I'm not sure." she said, just looking up at him. When he turned back around to her, he saw her curious gaze.

"What?" he asked suspiciously.

"Former military, or an independent militarized group." she stated, staring at him for a reaction. But she didn't get one. He just sat on the bed and nodded. "That explains a little bit about your situation." she said as she sat next to him. He just continued to looked down at the floor.

"What gave me away?" he asked sourly.

She chuckled. "Let's see..." she said, holding up her hand. She then began to count off on her fingers. "Military time on clock, bed made perfectly, bullet scarring, military grade duffel bag, and a previous occupation that involves the necessity to kill." she finished as she stared at him.

He chuckled and rubbed his head gently. "You got me..." he said, but smirked slightly. "Sorta."

"Sorta?" she asked, wondering what she missed.

He just smiled up at her. "That's for you to find out."

She smiled back at him, then walked up and just hugged his head to her chest, stroking his hair lightly. "You've been through a lot Jack. You've experienced things I couldn't even dream up in my nightmares. Yet you still try and hold it all in." she said silently. He reached out and pulled the young librarian into his lap, where she sat, and continued to console him. "You don't have to hold it in anymore. I'll be here for you, no matter what you need." she said as she tilted his head up to look at her. They locked eyes for a long moment, before Jack leaned forward and kissed the young woman deeply.


	10. Errands

OoO( 10 )OoO

He was there again. It seemed like these dreams had become more frequent to try and torture him. At the very least, just being in Mineral Town seemed to have almost entirely eliminated his previous nightmares. He wasn't sure if there was some kind of spell cast over the town, but whatever the cause, he was extremely grateful.

This time was different however. Instead of reliving his childhood, he was watching it from another perspective. At the edge of the Goddess Pond was him and the girl again. This time, she was sitting on her knees, and he was laying with his head in her lap. She reached down and gently stroked his hair as Little Jack sighed happily with his eyes closed.

"You're going away soon, aren't you?" asked the girl, a sad tone to her voice.

Little Jack opened his eyes and looked up at her sadly. "Yeah."

"Will you miss me?" she asked as she finally took her eyes away from the pond and looked down into his dark eyes.

"Yeah! I will! I promise!" he said confidently.

"Will you come back someday?" she asked, brushing his cheek with her hand.

"I will." he responded simply, assuring her with his resolute gaze.

The young girl smiled sweetly, before leaning down and kissing him directly on his lips. Jack's eyes widened slightly before he pushed forward and returned the affection. Finally, the two pulled away and looked at each other with flushed cheeks. "My mom wants me to go to school on the mainland. So I'll be leaving when I get older too."

"Maybe we'll meet out there." he said with a warm smile.

She giggled quietly. "I hope so. But I want you to promise me that one day you'll come back here so that we can meet again." she said, taking his hand on holding it over her heart. "Promise me on this."

Jack, who was flushing intensely now, nodded. "I promise, someday I'll come back to you."

The girl smiled and pushed his head back into her lap again. "Good, now sleep."

"Sing me a song again!" he begged as he nestled himself into her lap.

She nodded, her smile at his eagerness as big as it could get. "Of course." Clearing her throat, she began to sing in a heavenly melodic voice.

"So far away from my home, sweet home.  
Day by day from land to land I roam.  
Though told by the wind which way to go,  
Oh how I long for my home, sweet home…"

Little Jack took in her voice, that lovely voice that made him feel so pleasant that he eventually nodded off. Jack watched the pair from behind as the younger him fell asleep. He too took in the familiar song from his past, her voice like that of a siren.

"Fragrant blossoms blooming far away.  
Do my folks see them as I did long ago?  
Are they still joyful? Are they young at heart?  
Will I see them again as I did that day?"

Eventually, he sighed and fell back into the grass, he too feeling tired from the melody. But his eyes shot open as he realized that his head was laying in someone's lap. Looking up, he couldn't see her face because the sun behind her was glaring directly into his eyes. "I missed you Jack." she said sweetly as she stroked his head.

"I…" he started, the tiredness taking him. "I missed you too. I've been...looking for you." he mumbled as he closed his tired eyes.

"You'll find me soon Jack." she said, then she leaned down and kissed him.

OoOoO

Jack's eyes snapped open to find himself back in his bed. Looking around erratically, he confirmed that he was indeed in his own house. Finally, he sat up and just stared at the floor with his feet hanging off the bed. That was the first time he'd actually had a dream where she spoke to him. When he had gotten the call about Mr. Alexander's will back in the hotel, his first thought had been her and his promise. But he didn't expect her to actually be here.

Even so, the girl from his dreams was starkly different from the other girls here. He couldn't quite recall her hair or eye color, and her voice would have changed since then. So the only lead he had on who she was was the song. He knew this was a sore issue. He couldn't just outright ask any of the girls if they knew it. Then again, it was just a dream. The girl in question could very well be long gone from here, even dead for all he knew. Ten years was a long time for things to go wrong.

As he was throwing his mind into turmoil, the puppy came up to his feet and nudged his leg. Looking down at the canine, he smiled and reached down to scratch his ears. The pup had grown quite a bit since their arrival, and was a proper dog rather than a puppy now. His ribs were no longer showing, and as if to cement the fact that he was a wolf pup, his tail hung between his legs rather than arching over his back like huskies and malamutes. He found it odd that a wild animal could be so easily domesticated. Then again, a consistent meal was a powerful motivator.

Jack smiled as he stood up and walked out of his room and over to the front door of his house. Opening the wooden door, the dog bolted out with his tongue dangling from his mouth, straight across the bridge and into the woods. "He might not come back one of these times." came a soft voice from outside the door. Jack stepped outside and looked at the visitor, seeing an old man who was dressed oddly. He wore a red tunic paired with green shorts, and had sandals on his feet.

Jack looked into the man's spectacled eyes as the visitor nodded in greeting. "If he does find a mate out there, then I'm happy for him. He was practically starving to death when I found him."

"What's his name?" asked the old man.

Jack scratched his head thoughtfully. "I haven't really given him one yet." he remarked, then a thought flew into his head that made too much sense. Everyone knew about the correlation anyway, so he might as well run with it. "I think I'll name him Ares."

"Ha! A good name if I've ever heard one!" shouted the bald man with a wide smile.

Jack chuckled and leaned against the door frame. "So, what can I do for you Barley?"

"Well young'n, I was hopin' you could do me a favor." said the old man as he stepped up to the farmer. "See, I've got this whippersnapper of a young colt that won't listen to a dern word I say! Unfortunately, I'm a bit to old to be breaking in horses anymore, and May is too young. So I was hopin' you could take him and help him burn his excess energy."

Jack went wide eyed for a moment. "You want to give me a horse?" he asked in awe.

"Yer dern right! He's a good horse, and I'd hate to see him taken to some pony show where they would stagnate his potential by makin' him do menial dog tricks." he snapped, clearly emotional about the horse shows.

"Well, since you put it that way, I guess I could take him." said Jack as he scratched his head nervously. He had ridden horses before, and even tamed a few. But most of those were adults, and were meek to begin with. This one sounded like a problem child.

"Good! Me and may will bring him over later and stable him!" said Barley happily as he slapped Jack on the shoulder.

The young man nodded and smiled. "Any time old'n."

Barley eyed him with a challenging grin. "I ain't old! I've got another hundred years in me!" he said as he hobbled back towards the entrance to the farm.

Jack chuckled as the old timer left, then looked over to his crops. His eyes widened slightly as he walked over to the stalks and sprouts sticking out of the ground. He and Cliff had harvested several times before and never had trouble. But as he knelt down and looked at the plants, it looked like they were dying from the roots. Grabbing one of his turnips, he pulled it out of the ground and stared wide-eyed as he saw it was shriveled up.

"What the hell?" he asked as he looked down the row. Most of the plants showed similar signs of petrification, their green leaves turning grey with death. "I might have to get Basil out here…" Sighing and dropping the turnip, he went back to the house and closed the door behind him.

OoOoO

Popuri was outside of her house, with a full bag of seed as she fed the chickens. It was her favorite thing about working on a chicken ranch. All of them with their feathers flocking around to happily eat the seed that she scattered.

She was so lost in her activity that she didn't even notice the visitor that now stood behind her. "Hey Pinkie." said Jack with a smile.

Startled, Popuri dropped the seed bag and it spilled on the ground, causing the chickens to rush her feet for access. She quickly jumped out of the way, then turned to Jack. "Hey Jack! Sorry, you scared me a bit." she said as she held her hand over her heart like she was trying to slow it down.

"Sorry about that. I'll call you from the gate next time." he promised as he reached in and picked up her seed bag from the scrabble of chickens. Once he freed it from the mass of pecking birds, he handed it to her with an apologetic smile.

Popuri smiled and took it, blushing slightly as she looked at the ground. "So, what did you come here for?" she asked questioningly.

Jack reached up, resting his hand on his head with a sigh. "Unfortunately, my crops are going downhill, so I'll have to start investing in livestock."

Popuri's face lit up at the comment. "So you want some chickens?" she asked, getting a nod from the farmer. "Alright, let's go get you some!" She grabbed Jack by the hand and led him into the coop to help him pick.

"There was also another reason." he said as they entered the small enclosure.

She turned to him questioningly. "What is it Jack?"

He looked at the ground nervously. "I...was hoping you could teach me how to dance."

Her face was bright when he mentioned needing chickens. But her expression now could have lit the room with its glow. Reaching out, she hugged the farmer tightly, squealing with happiness. "Of course of course! I'd love to Jack!"

He patted her on the back gently, smiling at her happiness. When she finally pulled away, she began wiping her eyes and sniffling. He looked at her oddly. "What's the matter?"

"It's just that...I've always wanted to be a dancer and a dance instructor. But...I'm stuck here and nobody in the town wants to dance." she said with a heavy sigh.

"So, you have to dance alone…" he said, his mind painting the picture clear enough. She nodded sadly, and he stepped forward and lifted her chin so that she was looking directly at him. "You can dance with me any time you like Pinkie."

She looked like she was about to break down crying again, but she held it in and held her hands tightly to her chest. "Thank you Jack." she said and sniffled again.

"Now, about those chickens…" he said with a bright smile.

She stared at him for a moment before going wide eyed. "Oh! Right! Let's see what you need!" she said as she pulled him towards the many sleeping coves they had within the coop.

OoOoO

"So, it was in relation to Mars...or Ares, the god of war from Greek mythology, and the circle represented Mars the planet?" asked Elli curiously, getting a small nod from Mary.

"Ares was said to transform into a wolf and roam the battlefields he created. So the tattoo definitely has a correlation to the Greek god. But why?" asked the librarian as she scratched her chin thoughtfully.

After a moment, Elli had a thought pop into her head. "So...if he's Ares, that means there are others, right?" she asked as she looked at her friend.

Mary's eyes widened. "Of course! It's highly probable that there are others with similar tattoos. Which means he was a part of a group that signified the pantheon!"

"But, what does that mean about his job?" asked the nurse worriedly.

"It means one of two things. Either he was part of a cult devoted to worshiping the Greek pantheon, or the more likely scenario is a mercenary group who used it as code names. If that's the case, I could definitely see why he was given the pseudonym Ares, given his...attempt to break the boulder." she said as the pieces slide together in her mind.

"That definitely sounds dangerous." said Elli sadly as she looked down at her desk.

But Mary stood and put a hand on her shoulder, eyeing her solemnly. "You know why I'm sharing this info with you. I haven't told anyone else because I promised him I wouldn't. So you have to keep this to yourself."

Elli nodded firmly. "Of course. I'll take it to my grave."

Mary just smiled as she relaxed. "Hopefully you won't have to." she said solemnly as she turned away from her close friend. "I've gotta go help my dad catalogue some stuff now. So I'll see you later!" she said as she waved.

Elli waved back happily. "Have a good rest of your day!"

As Mary exited the building, her face immediately went red. As if the devil himself had heard her talking, Jack appeared, walking down the road in front of the clinic just as she was leaving. Turning to look at her, he smiled widely. "Hey Sherlock. Any updates?" he asked with a smirk.

"Uhh...no...not as of yet. B-But if I do find out anything else, I-I'll let you know." she said, fidgeting wildly.

He cocked a curious eyebrow at her odd behavior. "Mary? Are you alright?" he asked, stopping his moving in front of her. Then, when he remembered her visit to his home, he relaxed slightly. "Is this about the kiss?"

"N-No!" she said sharply.

"Look, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have surprised you like that. It just...seemed appropriate." he said lowering his head apologetically.

"No! It...it was nice! I enjoyed it!" she said in slight panic. Taking a second, she calmed herself down and took a deep breath. "Look, even though it was surprising, I did in fact enjoy it. It's just, it happened so fast, and I never expected I would kiss you back. So I...left." she explained, still red faced at the encounter.

"Oh…" was all Jack said at the moment.

"We're great friends Jack. And if we want to be more, I'd like to take things a bit slower. We've got all the time in the world, and in case you haven't noticed, I'm not the only heart seeking your attention in the village." she said with a small smirk, making him return the playful remark.

"So you want me to be 100% sure before kissing you again?" he asked curiously.

She nodded. "In case you aren't aware sir, I happen to be a monogamous girl. And I believe Ann, Karen, Popuri, and Elli may also have hopes in their hearts. So until their hearts are secure and safe, I won't put mine at risk either." she remarked smartly.

He just nodded to her in a friendly manner. "Alright then. No more kisses for me from the lovely Miss Mary."

Now that the air had been cleared, they stood in awkward silence gazing at one another for a few moments before Mary finally spoke with a change of subject. "S-So, what are you up to?"

"Oh...right. I was actually on my way to visit your dad and see if he could help me with my crops. They seem to be dying off for some odd reason." he stated grimly.

"Oh! Then I'll go with you!" she offered as she stepped up to him.

Together the pair left and went to Mary's home next to the library. When the young woman opened the door, her mother Anna greeted them from the other side. "Oh, welcome back Mary! And...hello Jack." she said with a sparkling smile. "I was just thinking that Mary should invite you over for dinner sometime."

Basil in the back turned and smiled at Jack. "It seems that Mary isn't the only heart you've captured in the town." he said with a playful smile.

"Dad!" shouted Mary in embarrassment.

"Calm down dear, your father was just joking." said Anna as she took Jack's hand and led him over to their table. "Here, have a seat! We were actually about to eat!"

"Oh...uh, thank you." he remarked, a small, amused smile on his face at Mary's grumbling.

"Prepare yourself. My parents are weird." said the young woman as she sat at the table with them.

Both parents chuckled to themselves before Basil came over and set the first plate in front of Jack. "Here you are."

Jack looked down at the plate and examined the food curiously. It looked like a typical burger, but the patty was orange instead of the typical red or black of meat. On top of the mysterious patty were slices of avocado, lettuce, onion, and tomato. "Out of curiosity, is this a vegetarian burger?" he asked, looking up at Mary's father.

The botanist nodded with a grin. "Good eye. It's butternut squash cooked by yours truly. You see, the wife and I are vegan."

Jack's eyes widened at the claim, now understanding the food in front of him. He looked back and forth between the parents, first at Basil, then to Anna. He'd heard plenty of times from other people that vegans and vegetarians always suffered from lack of nutrients because they didn't eat meat. But as he looked at them both, he noticed nothing of the sort. Basil, while he wasn't as muscular as himself, was built as sturdy as anyone else. And Anna was...more than filled out.

Then he looked over at Mary curiously. "So, does that mean…?" he started, but the librarian shook her head.

"I mostly eat vegan food, but I don't have any issues with getting a kebab or burger from Kai's place." she remarked as she laid her head in her hand, her annoyed expression still present.

"Kai?" he asked, a bit confused at the name.

"Oh, he runs a restaurant on the beach every summer. You probably saw it closed down when you first came here." said Basil as he served up everyone else's dinner as well.

"He's cute." said Anna playfully as she continued staring at Jack. "Not as cute as you, but I'd take a bite out of him."

Jack's eyebrows shot up, still confused at the remarks from the woman. Mary, seeing his bewildered expression simply sighed to herself. "My parents are also polyamorous." she said with annoyance.

Suddenly the puzzle pieces slid together in his head. "Oh! I see." he said quietly as he looked back at Anna, who had a hungry look in her eye.

"Don't worry Jack. I'll keep my hands to myself. After all, my daughter doesn't share most of our ideals, so it would be unfair to her." said Anna as she picked up a fork and knife and started to cut her burger into pieces.

"Thanks I guess?" said Jack, slightly amused now as Mary groaned in apparent agony. He had yet to see the girl ever fall apart like she was now, and to be honest it was slightly funny. Then, he looked down at his plate as he realized that he was having fun, sitting at a table with a family and eating dinner. His own parents had never really had time to stop and eat with him, as their own work was far too important. The only close experience he'd had with this was with Mister Alexander, who welcomed him with open arms.

"Everything alright Jack?" asked Basil as he sat down with them to eat.

The farmer looked up at the family and nodded. "Yeah...I've just...never had this before."

"Well, it's great. Give it a taste!" assured Basil as he took a massive bite from his own.

Jack picked the sandwich up from his plate and took a bite as well, surprised by the taste. It was almost indescribable, but amazing regardless. He had yet to eat anything besides a bowl of cereal, so biting into the amazing burger was almost revitalizing. He ate it vigorously, finishing it within a couple bites before looking up and seeing the family looking at him in awe.

"Well, I'll take that as a compliment." said Basil in amusement as he set his burger down. "I take it you've never eaten vegan food before?"

Jack shook his head. "I had a strict diet that involved a lot of protein for muscle building. Plus to food was...less than flavorful." he said with a sigh. "Rarely did I have a chance to ever actually have a dinner like this, with either friends or family."

"Why is that?" asked Basil curiously, seemingly having forgotten his own food.

Jack sat in his seat, almost paralyzed by the question. If he answered truthfully, he'd have to tell them about his previous life. Instead, he opted to just offer them a small nugget of information to feed their curiosity. "Shortly after I left Mister Alexander's care and went with my parents out of country, my parents passed away. I had no brothers, sisters, aunts or uncles that I knew about. So I had to eat alone."

Looking up at them after telling the story made his eyes widen. All of them looked like they were about to cry, "Well…" started Anna as she sighed heavily to relieve the weight of her sorrow. "You're always welcome to come and eat with us. Besides, once your farm gets going full steam, you'll be our main supplier anyway." she said with a happy grin.

Jack sat back, slightly overwhelmed by the offer. "Thank you…" was all he could get out. Then, her statement reminded him of his original goal in coming here. "By the way, Basil?" At the mention of his name, the man perked up. "Something odd is going on with my crops, and I was hoping you could help me find out what's going on."

The botanist smiled and nodded. "Sure thing! That's what I do best after all." he claimed as he continued eating.

OoOoO

"I'm sorry about that." said Mary as the pair walked down the path away from the home.

"It's alright. I was happy to get to know you and your family better." said the farmer with a smile as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Well, if it weren't for me, I'm sure my mother would be all over getting to know you too." she said with a bit of snark in her voice. But when Jack chuckled at the joke, she couldn't help but smile. But the smile disappeared when she heard his next question.

"What do you think? Do I have a chance with her?" he asked with a cheeky grin.

She spun around and glared at him. "Jaaaaaaaaaack!" she growled as she balled her fists.

Immediately, Jack began running down the cobbled path away from her, shouting, "Just a joke! Bye!" as he passed her. She quickly followed, glaring at him the whole way.


End file.
